Latvia’s Prime Minister Krišjānis Kariņš has warned coalition partners that, in addition to the resignation of Minister of the Interior Marija Golubeva, Minister of Economics Jānis Vitenbergs will have to leave his post as well, as LTV reported on Twitter.
Coalition partners are given time to think whether or not they are prepared to continue working in the coalition.
As previously reported, Golubeva announced her decision to step down from her post as Minister of the Interior at a press-conference held on Monday, 16 May. The politician made the announcement, adding she will not wait for a report from the Ministry of the Interior about the situation observed on the 9th and 10th of May, and that the PM has caved in to the demand previously made by the National Alliance and that he is no longer able to support her work.
This is the reason why she has decided to return to the Saeima.
She also reported talks regarding the future of the coalition, adding that she does not believe her party Attīstībai/Par! might request dismissal for National Alliance’s own minister.
Last week the Saeima faction and board of the National Alliance demanded from the PM to dismiss Golubeva from her post for mishandling the situation observed in Victory Park on 9th and 10th May.
NA stressed – if the PM and coalition partners do not take into account the party’s opinion, the party may leave the government entirely.
Some of the opposition deputies in the Saeima also requested Golubeva to resign. Two legislative drafts were submitted to the parliament for a no-confidence vote.
Members of the ruling coalition gathered today at 12:00 for an extraordinary meeting to discuss NA’s requested dismissal for Golubeva.
Kariņš and Golubeva met on Friday, 13 May. After this meeting Golubeva said the PM did not voice any criticisms about her work.