Actor Gundars Āboliņš calls for scrapping three-month payout for outgoing Saeima deputies

Latvian actor Gundars Āboliņš sharply criticised the work of Saeima (parliament) deputies on the TV24 programme "Nedēļa. Post Scriptum", calling the compensation that lawmakers receive when their term ends unjustified. He believes the law should be changed.

Āboliņš opposes paying departing deputies compensation equal to three months' salary. In his words, deputies have already received benefits, representation expenses and large salaries, and they knew they risked not being re-elected. He urged that this money, which he estimated at about one million euros, be paid to the Children's Hospital.

Example: the citizenship decision

As an illustration of how politicians operate, he cited the 14th Saeima's decision to grant and later revoke citizenship of Indian scientist Divya Kanan Vishvanath, which became a loud scandal. Āboliņš called it a classic tactic: important questions are left to the end of a meeting, when participants are tired, and rushing, in his view, is always suspicious. He said he felt sorry for Professor Kalviņš, who, he believes, was misled.

The actor argued that the scandal undermines trust in science, and that the notion of "exceptional merit" is being degraded in Latvia. In his view, citizenship is sometimes granted on the principle of "as long as they are not Russian", and he named Brazilian blogger Felipe, who lives in Latvia, as an example.

Forecast for the next elections

Āboliņš believes the newly elected Saeima must work differently, but fears the "old guard" will be unwilling to give up power. He predicted that if voters' interests are ignored after the election and coalition manoeuvring dominates, only 30 percent of voters might turn out in the next Saeima elections. He also voiced disappointment at public passivity, saying people no longer take to the streets when dissatisfied.