Smer Co-Founder Says Party Has Become an Oligarchy Under Fico

Boris Zala, one of the founding members of Slovakia's ruling Smer party, has issued a sharp public condemnation of the movement he helped create, declaring that the party has transformed into an instrument serving oligarchic interests rather than the public good. In a video podcast interview, Zala argued that Smer's leadership — including Prime Minister Robert Fico — has become so intertwined with oligarchic networks that the party can no longer be distinguished from them. He described government ministers as little more than caretakers with no genuine vision for the country's future, and accused Fico of being personally hostile to democratic norms. "Slovakia must rid itself of this government as soon as possible," Zala said. Smer, which stands for "Direction" in Slovak, was founded in 1999 and went on to dominate Slovak politics for much of the past two decades, positioning itself as a left-of-center, social-democratic force — what its founders called a "third way" between traditional left and right. Fico led the party through multiple terms as prime minister before returning to power after the 2023 parliamentary elections. Critics, including now some of its own founders, argue the party has drifted far from its original principles. Zala's remarks carry symbolic weight coming on the 20th anniversary of Smer's first time in government, and reflect a growing internal reckoning over the party's ideological and ethical direction under Fico's continued leadership.