VILNIUS – Lithuanian Agriculture Minister Kestutis Navickas has survived an opposition-initiated interpellation and retained his post after 64 lawmakers voted in favor of his provided answers to the opposition's questions.
In protest, the opposition did not take part in the non-scheduled sitting.
The Seimas held a non-scheduled sitting on Wednesday to vote on Navickas after the interpellation procedure was adjourned until the next sitting on Tuesday, based on a proposal by the opposition group of Democrats "For Lithuania".
The opposition had expected the vote to take place during the parliament regular sitting on Thursday, but the ruling parties called an unscheduled sitting that was announced on Tuesday night after the plenary session.
The interpellation was initiated by the opposition group of Democrats "For Lithuania" after the group collected 56 signatures. It was also backed by representatives of the Lithuanian Farmers and Green Unions, the Social Democrats, the Labor Party and the Lithuanian Regions group.
The opposition claimed Navickas not only failed to respond to its comments, but also ignored calls of others to communicate and cooperate on topical issues. The minister was also criticized for his failure to listen to the arguments of farmers and their organizations, scientists, and representatives of local municipalities, amid accumulating problems in the agriculture sector.
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