"Zip it!" — Politicians Erupt in On-Air Shouting Match During TV Debate

Sunday's televised debate on CNN Prima News saw a heated clash between Industry and Trade Minister Karel Havlíček and Pirate Party leader Zdeněk Hřib. Motorists' Party leader Petr Macinka tried to defuse the row, repeatedly cutting in on Hřib with the line "zip it while others are talking."

The spat was triggered by Havlíček's business past, before he entered politics — a subject Hřib brought up while discussing public finances.

Mutual Accusations of Fraud

"You run things exactly the way you used to run your business at Sony. Your electronics company went bankrupt, yet you kept ordering new stock," Hřib said, adding that the current government manages public money with the same recklessness.

Havlíček tried to offer a brief defense, then shot back that, unlike himself, Hřib had entered politics "with empty pockets." The minister also branded his rival a fraudster, referring to Hřib's record as Prague's mayor.

While Havlíček was speaking, Hřib kept interrupting him. According to the Pirate Party leader, Havlíček "deceived seriously ill people, squeezing money out of them for dubious stem-cell treatment schemes" through a company linked to Jindřich Rajchl. This refers to Havlíček's involvement in a firm that, according to the magazine Reportér, allegedly charged patients tens of thousands of crowns for experimental treatment with no proven results.

"Are You High or Something?"

Macinka got the last word in the exchange. "You just keep rattling on. I'm waiting patiently, and you keep talking and talking. Are you high or something?" he snapped at Hřib. Calm only returned to the studio after the host threatened to cut the discussion short.

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Source: novinky.cz