Final Word from Monday, June 15, 2026

When Mirek Topolánek was introduced by Czech TV last week as ex-PM and chairman of the District Heating Association, he said it always amuses him when they mention that least-important and even unpaid position. Viewers certainly would get a better understanding of where he was coming from if ČT introduced him as part of Daniel Křetínský's EPH and asked him about his role there, but that might not fit well with the issue he was supposed to talk about, which was Andrej Babiš's conflict of interest. Babiš, Topolánek said, has a permanent conflict. Efforts by four coalition MPs to iron this out for Babiš are the latest "communication card" for the opposition, and the level of public outrage is rising. Babiš truly is taking conflict of interest to a new level. But many people are also secretly pleased. If "independent" experts in defense, finance, health, etc., had to list their own conflicts of interest, Czech TV would have to stop inviting some of them. So it's better not to ask Topolánek how he makes his living. [ Czech Republic Television EP Industries ]