Petr Lessy appointed police president

Interior Minister Radek John on Monday appointed Petr Lessy the country’s new police president. The appointment preceded a meeting with Prime Minister Petr Nečas who said he had not dropped his reservations regarding the selection process of the new police chief, but would not hinder the appointment in the interest of maintaining coalition unity. The new police president was chosen by a special commission at the instigation of the interior minister. Some experts have questioned the legality of the procedure. Lessy’s predecessor Oldřich Martinu was forced to resign under pressure from the interior minister who accused him of being a puppet of the senior party in government, the Civic Democrats.