Latvian PM burning out?

I am back from Stockholm where I was invited to attend the Södertörn University Centre for Baltic and East European Studies (CBEES) very well organized conference. In plane I read encouraging news about Riga Administrative Court staying firm and not dropping demands from political parties who illegaly overspent their election campaigns. The prime minister´s LPP/LC party must repay 528 870,01 lats into state treasury by December 13, 2008 deadline. This is the money LPP/LC overspent during the illegal election campaign in September 2006, and also People´s Party (TP) and Union of Greens and Farmers (ZZS) used the same tactics, thus being required to repay Ls 529 981 and Ls 11 626 accordingly.

Such demand would literally bankrupt LPP/LC party. At the same time and after the IMF insistence the PM was presenting his ideas about leading Latvia out of the economic crisis in the parliament. There he announced that the Latvian state must cut expenses for about another Ls 600mlj. In his official speech he announced that he wants to see real actions of all stakeholders by the December 19, 2008 deadline, because otherwise government might not be able to fulfill its obligations already in March 2009.

It seems that Ivars Godmanis probably takes his tasks too seriously. He does not have an experienced team to help him in his ordeal, if he even had to fall asleep in yesterday´s parliamentary session... .


Photo: AFI