Czech president in hospital as new govt talks start
C ECH President Milos eman was taken to hospital in Prague on Sunday, a day after legislative elections delivered a narrow defeat to his ally, Prime Minister Andrej Babis.
eman, 77, is being treated in intensive care, Central Military Hospital director Miroslav avoral told CT radio.
He suffers from diabetes, according to reports, and is confined to a wheelchair due to a nerve disorder.
avoral said eman needed to be in intensive care due to complications related to his chronic illnesses.
“We know the diagnosis, so we can target treatment,” he added.
eman had met with Babis, a populist billionaire who became prime minister in 2017, for about 45 minutes at his Lany Castle residence near Prague earlier on Sunday, the CTK news agency reported.
Babis suffered a surprise defeat at the hands of an alliance of liberal-conservative opposition parties, which won 108 of the 200 seats in the Chamber of Deputies after voting was held on Friday and
Saturday.
eman plays a crucial role in determining what happens next, because as president he is in charge of naming who forms the next government.
Should the head of state be indisposed, this task will pass to the president of the Chamber of Deputies.
Post-election political turmoil was seen as a possibility, as eman had stressed he would not give a mandate to a coalition of parties, but to the strongest single party.
In this case, that would be Babis’ ANO party.
eman had only been released from hospital in September after an eight-day stay.
He has been president since 2013. He previously served as Czech prime minister from 1998 to 2002.
He is the first Czech president to be elected twice directly by the people following a constitutional amendment.
Zeman, 77, suffers from diabetes, according to reports, and is confined to a wheelchair due to a nerve disorder