Staněk will prepare a selection procedure for the NGP, waiting for Zeman's response

Prague - Minister of Culture Antonín Staněk (CSSD) will still prepare a selection procedure for the new director of the National Gallery in Prague while in office. He stated this in an interview for Mladá fronta Dnes (MfD), published today by the iDNES.cz server. He also mentioned that it was up to President Miloš Zeman how he would respond to his resignation. Staněk announced his departure from office today for the end of May, stating that he decided to heed the call of CSSD chairman Jan Hamáček. He faced criticism from the cultural community and the opposition, among other reasons, due to the dismissal of the director of NGP, Jiří Fajt.

Staněk said he would definitely hand over the prepared selection procedure for the new NGP director to his successor. "As of today, I have not resigned; the resignation is effective as of May 31, and in this regard, I will continue to work. I have to prepare the conditions for the selection procedure, and at this moment, I even have three names of people who would like to work in the advisory board for the preparation of this procedure,” he stated. He did not want to reveal who they were. Last week, the narrower leadership of the Social Democrats ordered Staněk to prepare selection procedures for the heads of NGP and the Museum of Art in Olomouc (MUO), which he also dismissed.

Zeman, who accepts ministers' resignations, will meet with Hamáček on Thursday, May 23, and with Staněk on Tuesday, May 28, announced the President's spokesman Jiří Ovčáček. Staněk told the newspaper that he could not imagine leaving the ministry without management. "It is truly a matter for the president as to how he will approach the resignation," he pointed out. After Fajt's dismissal, opposition representatives stated that Staněk was trying to please Zeman with this step to keep him in the government. Fajt is among the trio of scholars whom the president refused to appoint as professors in May 2015, even though they were duly proposed. Charles University is engaged in a legal dispute with Zeman over this.

In the interview, Staněk reiterated that he stands by his steps and actions as minister. He succeeded in raising salaries for employees in culture, declaring the Prague villa Bertramka and the Prague department store Kotva as cultural monuments, he said. According to him, three laws are prepared that his successor can immediately submit to the Chamber of Deputies. "Certainly, it is the law on heritage protection; the law on public cultural institutions is prepared; we have materials ready for digitization; there is a lot," he said.

Staněk's departure from office was demanded by several petitions, open letters, and the opposition. The minister faced criticism for dismissing the directors of NGP and MUO, and people from the cultural sector and the opposition also spoke of his incompetence. Hamáček stated today that he would announce Staněk's successor's name at the end of May. Prime Minister Andrej Babiš (ANO) will submit Staněk’s resignation to Zeman only after he receives the information officially; this afternoon, he only received it via a text message from Hamáček.