The opposition filed a motion of no-confidence in Pere as deputy mayor at Tallinn city council on Thursday this week.

The two opposition parties in Tallinn, the Conservative People's Party of Estonia (EKRE) and the Center Party – the latter until recently had been in office in the capital for nearly 20 years – both say they believe a deputy mayor whose communication in critical situations is lacking, self-justifying, and "offensive" to residents, should not be in the post.

Pere had, according to the parties, vigorously criticized snow clearing practices in Tallinn while in opposition, only to make ill-considered personnel decisions once in office.

Pere entered office in mid-April.

All this demonstrates that he cannot cope with the pressures of the job, the opposition parties say, and are calling on coalition deputies to vote in favor of the no-confidence motion – which would be required for it to get a majority.

The motion of no-confidence in Pere was submitted by EKRE and, Center's Tallinn city council chair Kalle Klandorf says, is backed by Center.

Klandort cited Pere's decision to fire deputy head of the Municipal Department, Tarmo Sule as "extremely unfair," "rash" and "detrimental to all residents." Sule had been " a distinguished and capable leader in this field," Klandorf added.

EKRE's Tallinn chair Mart Kallas submitted the motion on Thursday, charging Pere with having made hasty personnel decisions, being unable to manage his area of responsibility, and having an "arrogant" attitude.

The triggering event had been issues with the removal of snow last Tuesday, April 23, when an unusual amount of snowfall for the time of year was seen in the capital.

Kallas said that snow in April was "not unusual, as Estonian springs are fickle and deceptive."

"Unfortunately, the newly appointed Deputy Mayor Pere did not take this into account, quickly dismissed competent staff, and consequently struggled with snow removal on April 23," Kallas added.

This, he said, had led to major and minor roads, cycle lanes and sidewalks not being dealt with, leading to them being slippery or impassable, and delays in public transport.

"The incompetent Deputy Mayor Pere simply advised residents to be patient while moving around town and to accept that such situations will occur again in the future, thereby confirming that he is unable to handle even a single day's snow removal either now, or in the future," Kallas said.

"If you can't handle governance, pass the baton to those who can," Kallas added.

When the no-confidence motion in Pere will be voted on has not yet been announced. It is the second such motion to have been put forward by opposition deputies since the new city government entered office less than a month ago. The previous motion, against Jevgeni Ossinovski (SDE) as mayor, failed to pass.

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