A no-confidence motion has been filed by Slovenia’s leftist opposition against Prime Minister, Janez Jansa, accusing the government of mishandling the COVID-19 pandemic, spurring on a parliamentary vote that will commence next week. Forty-two members of Parliament have signed the motion, out of the required 46 to oust the government.
If the no-confidence vote is successful, the leader of DeSUS will be the next candidate to serve as Prime Minister of the country.
To topple the government, the opposition needs to have support from the Party of Modern Center (SMC). The current setup is a coalition government with SMC, New Slovenia, and the Jansa’s Slovenian Democratic Party (SDS), sharing the power.
However, the director of SMC who is also the Economic Minister has come out in favor of the current government because he believes that stability is essential in battling the coronavirus and to protect the economy of the country.
There have been protests against Jansa accusing him of corruption and his government has been severely criticized for mismanagement of the coronavirus crisis, following a surge in infections and the number of deaths.
The head of the Social Democrat Party, who is also a member of the parliament, has said that people are no longer supporting the current government because they are extremely frustrated.
Even though Jansa’s administration was applauded for its approach to managing the coronavirus pandemic, a whopping 3000 people have succumbed to the virus after the sudden rise in the number of cases.
Jansa is also known to be a staunch supporter of US President Donald Trump, even congratulating him for winning the elections when the votes had not been finished counting. He has also been criticized for following in the footsteps of Trump, picking fights with politicians on Twitter, and propagating conspiracy theories and false information.
According to the opinion polls, the popularity of the current government has dropped down to 30%, the lowest percentage in two years.
