Could you tell us why Kalev Stoicescu left the party leadership?

Surely Kalev himself must answer this question. His departure came before the party's board approved this year's budget.

How would you describe this dispute that has arisen within the leadership?

I'm sorry that this has come to public attention, in fact I wouldn't want to discuss the internal affairs of the party in public at all. Much of the problem has to do with the party's management style, which for some time has been characterized by a lack of transparency in decision-making. And also, specifically, a concern about accounting. Some board members have expressed concern about having the mother of one member carry out the bookkeeping. At this meeting, I voted against this year's budget and will not coordinate any financial decisions until the accountant is replaced.

Why did you and Hendrik Terras vote against approving the party budget?

I have no confidence that the budget reflects the actual volume of campaign expenses, actual cost items and objectives.

Who is responsible for making this happen?

The board is responsible.

Is the chair also responsible?

Absolutely, all of us as board members are responsible.

What exactly is the mistrust between the members of the party leadership?

Trust is based on experience. If you can say from direct experience that people and the party are behaving as agreed, then you can trust them. I do not have that option at the moment.

You told Postimees that important decisions are rarely made by the party leadership. Where are they made?

The party leadership was elected to represent the interests of the party members and must act accordingly. If the executive board is given only a nominal role, with the duty to formalize decisions made elsewhere, it will not be able to fulfill its duties as required by its statue.

What examples can you give of this opacity?

This lack of transparency in the decision-making process has also spilled over to the parliamentary group. A concrete example is the issue of reverse auctions for offshore wind farms, where we clearly agreed and suddenly Marek Reinaas decided to go the other way. And there are still no answers to these questions.

What impact will this conflict have on the party?

This overall atmosphere has also led to a situation where we end up with conflicts of values, which is very clearly reflected in our declining support. You cannot make the world a better place if things are not right on the inside.

I will also ask about the rating in more detail. At the moment, the main members of the Eesti 200 that I have talked to do not see the ratings as important at all. In your opinion, is it not important?

Ratings are always important for any political party. It is also understandable that there have been some unpopular decisions that the government has had to make. But for a party to function and to deliver on the promises it made to the electorate, it has to have a functioning leadership, and today there are tensions in the leadership because cooperation is not working. It has been for some time. If we don't get our act together and sort these things out, I don't know where this rating is going to go.

Would you like to see any changes in the party's leadership or board?

I support fair, transparent and accountable business practices and an open and democratic organizational culture. As it now stands, there are difficulties in all of these areas.

How do you assess the work of party ministers?

I am satisfied with the work of the government team.

What do you think about the initiatives of the Minister of Economic Affairs and Information Technology, Tiit Riisalo, on the personalized state and how they have been received by the public and the coalition partners?

The personalized state has been a programmatic initiative of Eesti 200 for years. I think that criticizing Tiit Riisalo for implementing the party's long-standing policy is completely unfair. However, I do believe that every politician must be open and able to explain political initiatives to the public.

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