Kristopans left his Latvia's Way party after his stint as prime minister from 1998 to 1999, but now says he does not intend to officially join either the Greens or Farmers.
Instead, he claims his decision to run for parliamentary elections this October stems from a desire to make good on various promises he made four years ago during his political campaign and to complete the work he began as transport minister in the mid-1990s.
The Green-Farmer bloc was his choice because he had carefully examined programs of the two parties and found in them two priorities which he himself regarded as very vital.
If the bloc wins any seats in the Parliament, it will pay special attention to the rural road program and re-establish the Ministry of Forestry.
"I will do my best to ensure that people can take a paved road from every (rural) district center to get to Riga... People will see that roads are also being built, not only just patched," he said.
Kristopans accused Latvia's Way of changing its priorities after his government was toppled in July 1999, a decision that he said convinced him to give up his seat in Parliament.
He decided on a political comeback after he realized he was wrong to believe that current ruling parties will lose the power after the coming elections.
"For things to change, people have to change themselves. For power to change hands, one is not enough," said Kristopans, perhaps in reference to Einars Repse, the former Bank of Latvia president who has established The New Time Party, promising dramatic changes to the electorate.
He predicted a strong showing for the Greens and Farmers in the Oct. 5 election, suggesting they could gain some 20 seats thanks to disgust with the ruling parties.
Neither party is represented in the current Parliament.
Please enter your username and password.
2024 © The Baltic Times /Cookies Policy
