The Constitutional Court rejected the complaint regarding the vote on the Zlín hospital.

Brno – The Constitutional Court (ÚS) rejected the complaint of former governor of the Zlin Region, Libor Lukáš (formerly ODS), regarding the vote by councilors on the Zlin hospital. This follows a court decision published on its website. Councilors approved the establishment of the hospital two years ago, but according to Lukáš, the regional council unlawfully restricted the citizens' right to express their views on the construction by adding the item about the hospital to the agenda at the last minute. However, according to the court's decision, the councilors acted in accordance with the law.

The Czech Television highlighted the court's decision. "Although it can be agreed that the 'late' inclusion of a significant item on the agenda of the council's meeting may objectively raise doubts about the 'honesty' of such a procedure, it is not true that this leads to a 'practical nullification' of citizens' constitutionally guaranteed right to participate in the administration of public affairs. The complainant was not prevented from attending the meeting and commenting on the subsequently added item," states the resolution of the Constitutional Court.

The councilors approved the construction of the hospital in the previous electoral period, and former governor Jiří Čunek (KDU-ČSL), who promoted the hospital's construction, unexpectedly proposed the item at the end of the council meeting's agenda. Lukáš, along with other plaintiffs, such as the regional chairman of the Association of General Practitioners, Lubomír Nečas, filed two lawsuits against the council's actions, but they were unsuccessful in both the regional court and the Supreme Administrative Court. Lukáš subsequently turned to the Constitutional Court.

The current leadership of the region rejects the construction of the new hospital, which Čunek advocated, preferring a gradual reconstruction of the current complex. Councilors approved the construction of the hospital in the previous electoral period, the region purchased land for it and prepared a contract with the winner of the public procurement for the designer, which Čunek, however, did not sign. According to the former governor, the hospital was supposed to cost eight billion crowns. There was also opposition to the construction from representatives of the ANO movement, which was in coalition with the Christian Democrats in the previous electoral period, as well as from some representatives of the coalition ODS, while some opposition councilors voted for the project at that time. The new hospital was the main topic of the regional elections, and representatives of the new coalition of the winning ANO movement, Pirates, ODS, and ČSSD united in their opposition to it.