Will we be able to protect Latvia’s independence in X hour?

Is our Constitution conservative enough? Does it need amendments?

I think the fathers of the Constitution were quite wise and incorporated all the necessary and important points that we still use today. And hardly any fundamental changes would be needed. By the way, corrections were made not long ago, and even then there were discussions about what and how much to add. I am speaking in this case of the points affecting marriage between a woman and a man.

Does the legislative process in Latvia proceed smoothly, logically and sequentially? Deputies work in a disciplined manner, are they honest about their duties?

When I took office, one of my goals was to explain more to the public about the process by which we adopt laws and decisions. These laws have been extensively discussed in Saeima commissions, but perhaps they have not been sufficiently told to the public. And often due to this lack of communication, certain misunderstandings arise and the essence of the law is misunderstood among the population. This communication can always be strengthened and improved. Also, when meeting in the Saeima with representatives of non-governmental organizations, they emphasize that laws are complex in nature and should be explained in simplified language. And we learn to do it. Also preventive. And let’s see how the society reacts to one or another provision of the law. In my opinion, the Saeima is quite flexible – the members understand and try to listen to this need.

How understanding are the deputies towards each other? How do they pronounce problems?

Deputies are sometimes quite cruel in their rhetoric when debating with each other, as discussions and debates sometimes turn into personal insults, which is not a good practice. We must be able to argue respectfully, be able to justify our point of view, and such mutual resentments should be put aside. We understand that there are MPs who want to collect advantages for themselves with such a manner of discussion, but what we see in real life – no MP has risen higher by “putting down” the other. I wish the same to the deputies – to look for arguments and, feeling that an issue cannot be influenced, not to use insults, but to look for other arguments. This is the essence of parliamentary work – to look for the best arguments to pass laws in a balanced manner. Of course, there will be situations when someone will stick to his opinion, but if there is an effort to find those right words and arguments, the result will be there. Only as a result of discussions can we arrive at the highest quality outcome.

Are Saeima deputies significantly different from local government deputies?

It differs because in local governments, the priority is more various economic matters. In the Saeima, a deputy must be a strategist. When passing a law, one must also be able to model ahead what the consequences will be. We adopt norms that affect the whole of Latvia, and every decision will have an impact on the budget and people’s lives.

How easy was it for you to reorient yourself to this strategy?

When working in the municipality, there were strategic issues in the work schedule, because it is difficult to separate the municipality from the state – the decisions that the state makes are further implemented by the municipalities. Therefore, local government leaders always express their opinion, as they see each law from the perspective of the doer. Local government leaders have always emphasized that they cannot be ordered to perform specific functions if their performance is not accompanied by state funding.

On May 4, we celebrate the Independence Day of the Republic of Latvia. Are we sufficiently aware of and guarding the regained independence? Are the MPs patriotic enough?

I think everyone is aware of the importance of independence. We can look at this historical footage, how people were waiting for this vote back then and what excitement there was when the decision was made. It was an indescribable moment. We now have so much freedom of expression, including freedom of speech, that we didn’t have before. We must be able to appreciate it, but even more so we must do everything to protect this independence, freedom, democracy of the country, because it is a very fragile border. We see what is happening in other countries, where people come to power who can push the country into disaster. We are grateful from the bottom of our hearts to those deputies who were so brave in May 1990 and made the decision to restore the country’s independence, and we must continue this path of democracy.

Will we be able to protect Latvia’s independence in X hour?

Yes, we can, because the Latvian people are very strong. Morally. Mentally. We are sometimes very critical of ourselves, but that is because the bar has been set quite high. We need to think about what message we are bringing to each other. Criticism is necessary, but you don’t need to constantly insult and criticize everyone and live with the idea that everything is bad.

When interviewing many different people, I often hear their expectations from officials to receive a clear signal about where the country is heading, what our goals are, where and what we will be in 5, 10, 20 years. Can you convey such a message?

We are moving towards a developed and prosperous country. We have taken a series of decisions to strengthen the internal and external security of the country. We have committed to allocate 3% of the gross domestic product to national defense. We want to organize the network of schools, the structure of internal affairs. There are still quite a few challenges in our economy.

Economic growth is sometimes visible, sometimes not so much…

As with any process, there are successes and failures. The key is to recognize these mistakes and correct them. It is not for nothing that our great spirit Rainis had a saying: what will change will exist. One of the priorities of this government, as well as mine, is to reduce red tape and simplify processes, such as doing away with inventory cases, which would be a great relief for those working in the construction industry.

Not only the bureaucracy is a problem, but also, for example, the extinction of the countryside – they are becoming more and more empty, schools are closing, post offices are closing.

This is a problem for the whole of Europe. People want to live in cities. However, yes, I agree – it is a big challenge to prevent the countryside from disappearing. One of the steps could be to strengthen those farms that still work in the regions with some tax incentives. Regarding the school network, there are two aspects – availability and quality. Where there is a school, there is life and development, but at the same time it must be recognized that the quality of education does not depend on the number of students in the class, but on capable teachers. And it costs the state something to be able to attract such teachers.

How will you celebrate the 4th of May?

Both May 1 and May 4 will be a working day for me, but we will gather at the festive table in the family on another day.

What do you wish for the people of Latvia on this holiday?

First of all, I want to say thank you to our people – we live here, work and make this country better together. I would like to wish less to complain about what we did not get, but to be able to appreciate what we have – we are in NATO, in the European Union, we can travel freely, express ourselves freely. We must all build prosperity together, because water does not flow under a lying stone.

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