On Saturday, 24 January 1998, there was a whole-republic board of representatives of the Movement for a Democratic Slovakia (HZDS), where the leader Vladimir Meciar had a speech. The daily PRACA brought on Saturday, 28 February 1998, the complete text of this speech. GUGSP is now bringing the very brief contents with interesting citations. The original text in Praca was much longer, so this is really just a brief translation done by me, but the exactly translated citations are in italics.

All HZDS structures have to react more flexibly to the interior and foreign political evolution. The opposition succeeded to spread insure, hostility, and to change the right face of things, so that about 52% of people understand, that only the governmental coalition and V. Meciar personally are responsible for the majority of negative attributes in Slovakia. However, it's not sure they'll think so within 8 months, if we act in a different way. "The knowledge of risk is a half-success. The second half is the ability to eliminate it, so that such events do not happen."

It's necessary to realize, that the pre-electoral campaign already began and HZDS is obligated to mobilize its structures in all spheres, mainly because of the danger of the political revenge in the case the opposition wins. "Concerning the attempted murder, the information is true, it's not such a thing, that wouldn't be verified." The voters' base of HZDS is stable, but we are still not satisfied with the work of the electoral team, which does not attract well undecided voters, or the voters of SDK (Slovak Democratic Coalition) and SDL (Party of the Democratic Left). "So the fight for the voters' majority is still in front of us. The situation of HZDS is worse in the cities, in younger categories, and in 4 regions HZDS would loose: Bratislava, Nitra, Kosice, Presov. The worst loss is in Presov, where HZDS is on the sixth place, far behind KDH (Christian-Democratic Movement) We have to answer ourselves how it was possible to loose such a large region." The absolutely weakest HZDS position is in Bratislava.

"The organization of elections in 1998, it will be necessary: (a) managing of time aspects, the interest of citizens is much lower in July and August; (b) the time difference between the parliamentary and communal elections is 6 weeks; (c) it's necessary to attract undecided voters. - the opposition profits of non-participation in elections, HZDS looses by non-participation." It's necessary to develop a very good cooperation between the movement managers and the state administration. "The state administration has to respect the decisions of the political organs, and to improve the quality of elections by its work."

HZDS has to respect the fact, that the society has been differentiated during our government. We do not refuse entrepreneurs, these just have to respect the difference between business activities and politics. The problem was with the regional structures of HZDS, as the departments did not propose correctly their candidates for leading functions.

HZDS will integrate more its electoral program, which means, that they'll send, for example, young people abroad, to learn how to improve the governmental program in the Slovak Republic. HZDS organized a concurs for students, supported by financial program. "I believe it did a good impression on students, because we were the only who did so." HZDS will have to do much more for the elections 1998, much more than for any elections before. HZDS should present their candidates for mayors already in September. HZDS has to consider the situation in communal politics much better, to get the most places possible. It's not the interest of HZDS, all those demands of Hungarian minority politicians, who want the post of Culture Minister, Education Minister and State Secretary of Interior Ministry for the interior administration. "Such a status would be developed in all spheres as permanent, which is not the interest of HZDS."

HZDS proposes whole-country elections, the majority system, which means, that there would be as many districts as deputies and every one candidate would be elected directly, one of each district. It's more optimal for HZDS, if there are more voters in the elections.

The biggest problem in the communal election is that there are still not the managers of HZDS established in all cities, which means that HZDS will again loose in towns with ten thousands voters, and win only in smaller villages, where the work of such managers is too intensive. "HZDS's main aim is to win in the cities." There's a good progress only in the places where HZDS has its people.

The priests are doing the politics too, unfortunately. They do the politics of the Christian-Democratic Movement, not very friendly, and violating the ideas of the pope. "We are not against the Church, but if it's a political opinion, we go against its holder."

"We have a very concrete image of the future, and we're the only who have it. The Slovak Democratic Coalition's only slogan is - HZDS away, Meciar away! We will imprison, we will abolish the regional principle, we will perform the re-privatization, we will make order here. This is not a political program, it's a political primitivism."

HZDS wants also enter to the election committees. After several strange events in elections 1994 and referendum 1997, HZDS wants to give the opportunity to the independent courts. It's necessary to emphasize, that the opposition organized the referendum 1997 very well, since the communication between vote districts, until the administration of the whole country. "The opposition is much more working now. Not cleverer, but more working. The foreign institutions are helping them in all spheres. The weakness of HZDS is its medial politics, there's not a good coordination in radio."

It's necessary to prepare people for all the elections. In the whole country, it means about 40 thousand people. Also the people in the vote districts, which would make several thousands people. HZDS cannot underestimate the opposition, whose people are already well prepared. "Our task is to secure the elections democratic and under a public control, because if the opposition looses, it will say that HZDS manipulated the elections. If it wins, it will prove the correctness of its politics. An organ cannot enter the elections with fear, and we're not afraid. I said that I won't be the leader of the opposition, but it doesn't mean that we would loose. We must win. We do not have any other chance, we do not have any other alternative. It's not possible to govern without HZDS."

Therefore, it's necessary to meet with people, to speak with them, to attract them. "It's necessary to speak and to neutralize the influence of those who are against." It concerns some priests, teachers, doctors, and other groups. It's important to visit the firms that mean network, to influence on the people. "The only duty of HZDS is - to win. To win the elections in the support of the citizens. In any case, our duty is to get the position, so that: (a) we could create the government ourselves; (b) we could create a government with our coalition partner to make it more stable' (c) to create a government so that we would have a constitutional majority, and we could make such modifications of the Constitution, which would definitively change the political regime in Slovakia, so it would never change. We need just one thing - 90 deputies in the Parliament." HZDS has to win the election because of Slovakia. HZDs has to stabilize the interior political structure, and to improve the political influence on the majority of the Slovakian citizens.