Editorial: a prime ministerial getaway

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Photo: Урмас Немвальтс

Siim Kallas takes flight for life more peaceful.

As morning broke yesterday, Siim Kallas awoke as Reform Party prime ministerial candidate. Not many hours later, having announced at party meeting he’s backing out, the man sat on a plane bound for Brussels, Belgium. To a Postimees reporter behind VIP area fence, he explained: in an atmosphere like this, a prime minister cannot work.

Affairs around Mr Kallas can be viewed through two differing prisms. One says: a person ill inclined towards Mr Kallas provided journalists with papers bearing big numbers; the media took the bait and went hard after Mr Kallas. Questions abounded, answers were provided; each answer spawned many questions more. And: if indeed, once upon a time, messy stuff happened, then mainly that’s because the times were messy and, from back then, all have dregs in their cups. At least the doers do, that is. If anything genuinely criminal could still be found in the past of Mr Kallas, this would long have been unearthed due to the man’s position in European Commission.

Version No 2: the questions posed to Mr Kallas were due and justly so. A prime ministerial candidate ought to be able to explain doubts regarding his past, putting it plain and straight – regardless of how information got to the media. If a prime ministerial candidate does not remember or gives hazy answers, questions will continue till the answers come. The powers to be trusted to a prime minister are big enough to clarify things that appear dark – thus preventing future attacks. The more so that, in the Reform Party case, there’s been problems enough about straight talk. In domestic politics of Estonia, beating about the bush has caused ample headache.

And, anyway – while there are doubts, there’s no trust. Without public trust, a prime minister would have a very hard time doing his job. Not to mention that, for the scandals-ridden Reform Party expecting to turn a fresh bright clean page with Mr Kallas at the helm, the man turned useless.

Sure, it’s a pity Siim Kallas threw in the towel. Experience is worth gold, taking time to gain. In a tiny country like ours, not many Kallas League guys come around. Even so, a prime minister must be a man of strong nerves, to make it under political attacks.

As seen by Taavi Rõivas raised up as candidate, prime minister material is scarce. While a favourite of outgoing party chief Andrus Ansip, right after Kristen Michal and Keit Pentus-Rosimannus, Mr Rõivas has none of the qualities that were stressed as vital for prime minister as possessed by Mr Kallas – experience, and a big baggage of wisdom. Being young is no handicap, of course – in European history, top politicians younger yet come to mind. Still, this may lead to a situation where Reform Party has to ask itself a question: would they be ready to form a coalition under a prime minister proposed by some other party?

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