Ljubo

Ljubljana – The final debate of the election campaign hosted by the public broadcaster TV Slovenija last night ended in disarray after the host lost control of debate and opposition leaders walked out of the studio one by one after having their say.

Ljubljana – Ljubo Žnidar, an MP for the coalition Democrats (SDS), has resigned. The party said he stepped down for personal reasons and decided to continue his professional career in the corporate sector.

SDS deputy group leader Danijel Krivec said Žnidar no longer saw himself in this role and did not wish to contest an election again.

Ljubljana – After President Borut Pahor announced he would call a general election for 24 April, this triggered varied reactions from political parties all across the political spectrum. Coalition partners largely welcomed this decision, while opposition parties mostly still favour the increasingly unlikely option of a snap election.

Ljubljana – The newspaper Delo looks at the Pensioners’ Party (DeSUS) in Tuesday’s front-page commentary, saying it is going “down the road of no return” and that “its one-way ticket will not take it to parliament” in the next election. There is actually no rational reason to justify the existence of single-issue parties, the paper says.

Ljubljana – After the council of the Pensioners’ Party (DeSUS) adopted a resolution yesterday denying the government any further support, the party’s MPs said they were planning to continue with the same course of action as so far where they agree what their vote will be on each legislative proposal on a case-by-case basis.

Ljubljana – The council of the Pensioners’ Party (DeSUS) adopted a document on Tuesday whereby it denies any further support to the government, while calling on the government to resign immediately and call a snap election, DeSUS leader Ljubo Jasnič told reporters after the council’s session.

Ljubljana – The keynote speaker at the main ceremony marking Statehood Day and the 30th anniversary of Slovenia’s independence will be President Borut Pahor, while PM Janez Janša and President of the European Council Charles Michel will deliver addresses as well. The event will be open to everyone, the Government Communication Office (UKOM) said.

Ljubljana – The celebrations of the 30 years of Slovenia’s sovereignty and independence will culminate with the main national ceremony on Statehood Day on Friday, 25 June, in memory of the day in 1991 when the Slovenian parliament passed several key documents for the country to leave the former Yugoslavia and become fully independent.

Ljubljana – The Pensioners’ Party (DeSUS) elected Ljubo Jasnič, a former secretary general of the party, the new party head at a congress in Ljubljana on Saturday. He received 54 out of 117 votes.

Ljubljana – The Pensioners’ Party (DeSUS) will hold a congress on Saturday to elect what will be its third leadership in a year and a half. Last December, after less than a year under Aleksandra Pivec, the party again elected its ex-boss Karl Erjavec, but he stepped down in March. There are three contenders now.