Upon his return to the airwaves on Xaver Live after a vacation in Italy, veteran Czech commentator Petr Holec delivered a scathing critique of the country's political elite. From President Petr Pavel's mysterious trip to the NATO summit in Ankara to the landmark court decision that deemed Prime Minister Andrej Babiš's actions unconstitutional, Petr Holec warned that Czech democracy is facing a silent but systematic attack. His weekly live broadcast on XTV painted a picture of double standards, power grabs, and hypocrisy among media outlets funded by taxpayer money.
President Pavel's Mission in Ankara: Arms Contracts, Not Diplomacy
Petr Holec began the discussion with pointed questions regarding President Petr Pavel's participation in the NATO summit in Turkey. While official statements portrayed this visit as a routine diplomatic endeavor, Petr Holec highlighted a report from the Wall Street Journal, which revealed the true purpose: a defense industry forum where NATO allies and defense giants would sign new arms contracts worth billions of dollars.
“Petr Pavel said he was going to this very forum,” noted Petr Holec. “It wasn't something that came up out of nowhere.” The trip primarily served to promote arms production and profits for Western defense companies, rather than ensuring specific security guarantees for Czech citizens.
Petr Fiala Found Guilty of Unconstitutional Censorship
One segment focused on the recent ruling by the appellate court that declared the blocking of the news website AC24 in 2022 as illegal. The court explicitly stated that calls from the government to shut down the website constituted "practically censorship, and are therefore in violation of the Constitution."
Petr Holec directly read the words of the judge: "Calls for such action... do not have a binding character... and these bodies lack the authority to order the blocking of websites, which would effectively constitute censorship, and is therefore in violation of the Constitution."
Petr Holec accused Petr Fiala of acting like a "censorship and totalitarian," while the same government claimed to be defending European values.
Popular "Guardians of Values" at State Media Under Fire
Petr Holec reserved his harshest criticism for Czech Television and Czech Radio, accusing them of openly promoting vulgar and aggressive commentators while condemning similar behavior from the opposition. He specifically highlighted Roman Maca, whom public service media describe as a "shield of democracy," and who posted crude sexual remarks about ministers on social media. He also criticized Petros Michopoulos for his relentless personal attacks, noting that the same media outlets that persecuted Filip Turko for his internet posts are now celebrating Michopoulos.
“Why is it okay with Michopulos and not with Turka?” Holec asked. “Are we paying higher taxes in the name of independence and values?”
Concerns about the Constitutional Court and historical echoes
Petr Holec also expressed concern over the appointment of Josef Baxa as head of the Constitutional Court by President Petr Pavel. Petr Holec pointed out Baxa's career before 1989, when he was a judge in the communist era and sentenced a young man for attempting to emigrate.
“Forty years after the fall of totalitarianism, the president is appointing a man with exactly that kind of totalitarian past to head the Constitutional Court,” said Petr Holec. He argued that this choice undermines public trust in the court as the highest guardian of the constitution.
Broader context: A silent shift of power
Throughout the broadcast, Petr Holec's central thesis remained unchanged: a network of “value-oriented” elites is gradually concentrating power in the hands of the president and state institutions while silencing dissenting voices. He warned that without public oversight, these trends threaten parliamentary democracy itself, for which Czechs fought after 1989.
“This fall, we will go all out,” he concluded. “Just so it’s not like this again.”
The live broadcast, which regularly attracts tens of thousands of viewers, offered a raw, unfiltered look at Czech politics that many international observers rarely hear. Whether you agree with Petr Holec's analysis or not, his ability to connect court decisions, presidential trips, and media bias into a coherent warning about the erosion of democracy makes his commentary a must-listen for anyone following Central European politics.
gnews.cz – GH
You can watch the entire video (in Czech) here: