Final Word from Friday, August 13, 2004
Ever since he was appointed deputy premier, Martin Jahn has been lavished with praise in the media for his business sense. He's won support from the normally skeptical business community by saying he'll work to improve the business climate and stay away from privatization and public-finance issues. But after meeting with Finance Minister Bohuslav Sobotka on Wed., he put his foot in his mouth by saying privatization revenue could be used for paying for social programs. This made Jahn look like a run-of-the-mill politician. ODS, which was itself guilty in the past of throwing away privatization money, attacked Jahn's idea on TV Nova, although Jahn's name wasn't mentioned. ODS said rightly that privatization proceeds should be used for structural reform. The media gave Jahn a break this time, but he can't expect the honeymoon to last forever.