Final Word from Thursday, December 9, 2004
Almost any serious Czech businessperson knows who Deputy Premier Martin Jahn is, but STEM found that 68% of normal Czechs don't know him. He's the least-popular politician of those STEM follows. We've already seen that a popular Czech politician can be ineffective, but can an unknown or unpopular politician be effective? Petr Nečas of ODS told Czech Radio that Jahn is a figurehead with absolutely no party backing or real influence. Jaroslav Plesl of LN said Premier Stanislav Gross uses Jahn to shield himself from questions about the economy. Jahn has been a catalyst for some important legislation, but ODS is now preparing its own bills in time for its takeover of power. There's a serious possibility that Jahn's efforts to improve the business climate will be derailed in Parliament by MPs who have written Gross off and are jumping on ODS's bandwagon. [polling agency Lidové noviny Czech Republic]