VILNIUS — In line with their leadership of Lithuanian entertainment celebrities, voice teacher Deividas Staponkus will be the National Resurrection Party’s new candidate to head the culture ministry.

Staponkus will be the party’s second choice after President Dalia Grybauskaitė shot down their previous candidate Arūnas Valinskas, the party leader, asserting that he [private_supervisor]has neither the skills nor sufficient public standing required to be a minister. The party has been working to replace the current Minister of Culture Remigijus Vilkaitis over the last three weeks after pulling their endorsement of him.

Staponkus teaches singing at the the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theater, where he completed his PhD. The 34-year-old also sits on a council in the culture ministry overseeing arts management.

Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius told local media that he had reservations about the new minister’s status and will meet with him to discuss his potential work in the minister’s role. Staponkus is well-known as a singer, but is inexperienced in politics, he said.

To become a minister, candidates need the formal approval of the president, who oversees the work of the government.

Back to showbiz?

Valinskas, who was previously proposed to Grybauskaitė for the post, was rejected, which caused him to call the president a boba, which translates as “old hag” in English. The day after the outburst, he said he saw no need to apologize, but later retracted the comment.

Kubilius censured the party leader saying that he isn’t cultured and “thought out loud,” adding that Valinskas should watch his tongue in future. Via his spokesman Virginijus Valentinavičius, the prime minister said that now there definitely no reason to allow Valinskas into a position of power after his crude outburst, seen as needlessly antagonizing the popular president who has been an ally of the government while its hold on power remains tenuous.

Kubilius was hardly alone in his criticism of Valinskas — members of the Seimas were highly scornful of the new politician’s break of decorum usually reserved for the Lithuania’s head of state by parliament members.

Homeland Union-Christian Democrat member Evaldas Jurkevičius has called on the Supreme Official Ethics Commission to make a ruling on the affair. Jurkevičius said that politicians could not shoot their mouths off when they felt like it, adding that Valinskas didn’t understand the basics of civilized behavior.

Jurkevičius compared the incident to reactions at the time of the impeachment of the former president. When the impeached President Rolandas Paksas, who now sits in European parliament in Brussels, was kicked out of office, no one said a word out of respect for the position, he said.

“Even when former President Rolandas Paksas had his impeachment, none of the politicians allowed themselves to insult the president as Arūnas Valinskas did in response to President Grybauskaitė’s opinion on the him being minister of culture,” Jurkevičius said.

Given National Resurrection’s low poll numbers and large-scale defection last year, it appears the party’s wave of success has crashed against the shore and many of the show business personalities, including the TV star Valinskas could be consigned to the entertainment world come 2012. [/private_supervisor] [private_subscription 1 month]has neither the skills nor sufficient public standing required to be a minister. The party has been working to replace the current Minister of Culture Remigijus Vilkaitis over the last three weeks after pulling their endorsement of him.

Staponkus teaches singing at the the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theater, where he completed his PhD. The 34-year-old also sits on a council in the culture ministry overseeing arts management.

Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius told local media that he had reservations about the new minister’s status and will meet with him to discuss his potential work in the minister’s role. Staponkus is well-known as a singer, but is inexperienced in politics, he said.

To become a minister, candidates need the formal approval of the president, who oversees the work of the government.

Back to showbiz?

Valinskas, who was previously proposed to Grybauskaitė for the post, was rejected, which caused him to call the president a boba, which translates as “old hag” in English. The day after the outburst, he said he saw no need to apologize, but later retracted the comment.

Kubilius censured the party leader saying that he isn’t cultured and “thought out loud,” adding that Valinskas should watch his tongue in future. Via his spokesman Virginijus Valentinavičius, the prime minister said that now there definitely no reason to allow Valinskas into a position of power after his crude outburst, seen as needlessly antagonizing the popular president who has been an ally of the government while its hold on power remains tenuous.

Kubilius was hardly alone in his criticism of Valinskas — members of the Seimas were highly scornful of the new politician’s break of decorum usually reserved for the Lithuania’s head of state by parliament members.

Homeland Union-Christian Democrat member Evaldas Jurkevičius has called on the Supreme Official Ethics Commission to make a ruling on the affair. Jurkevičius said that politicians could not shoot their mouths off when they felt like it, adding that Valinskas didn’t understand the basics of civilized behavior.

Jurkevičius compared the incident to reactions at the time of the impeachment of the former president. When the impeached President Rolandas Paksas, who now sits in European parliament in Brussels, was kicked out of office, no one said a word out of respect for the position, he said.

“Even when former President Rolandas Paksas had his impeachment, none of the politicians allowed themselves to insult the president as Arūnas Valinskas did in response to President Grybauskaitė’s opinion on the him being minister of culture,” Jurkevičius said.

Given National Resurrection’s low poll numbers and large-scale defection last year, it appears the party’s wave of success has crashed against the shore and many of the show business personalities, including the TV star Valinskas could be consigned to the entertainment world come 2012. [/private_subscription 1 month] [private_subscription 4 months]has neither the skills nor sufficient public standing required to be a minister. The party has been working to replace the current Minister of Culture Remigijus Vilkaitis over the last three weeks after pulling their endorsement of him.

Staponkus teaches singing at the the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theater, where he completed his PhD. The 34-year-old also sits on a council in the culture ministry overseeing arts management.

Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius told local media that he had reservations about the new minister’s status and will meet with him to discuss his potential work in the minister’s role. Staponkus is well-known as a singer, but is inexperienced in politics, he said.

To become a minister, candidates need the formal approval of the president, who oversees the work of the government.

Back to showbiz?

Valinskas, who was previously proposed to Grybauskaitė for the post, was rejected, which caused him to call the president a boba, which translates as “old hag” in English. The day after the outburst, he said he saw no need to apologize, but later retracted the comment.

Kubilius censured the party leader saying that he isn’t cultured and “thought out loud,” adding that Valinskas should watch his tongue in future. Via his spokesman Virginijus Valentinavičius, the prime minister said that now there definitely no reason to allow Valinskas into a position of power after his crude outburst, seen as needlessly antagonizing the popular president who has been an ally of the government while its hold on power remains tenuous.

Kubilius was hardly alone in his criticism of Valinskas — members of the Seimas were highly scornful of the new politician’s break of decorum usually reserved for the Lithuania’s head of state by parliament members.

Homeland Union-Christian Democrat member Evaldas Jurkevičius has called on the Supreme Official Ethics Commission to make a ruling on the affair. Jurkevičius said that politicians could not shoot their mouths off when they felt like it, adding that Valinskas didn’t understand the basics of civilized behavior.

Jurkevičius compared the incident to reactions at the time of the impeachment of the former president. When the impeached President Rolandas Paksas, who now sits in European parliament in Brussels, was kicked out of office, no one said a word out of respect for the position, he said.

“Even when former President Rolandas Paksas had his impeachment, none of the politicians allowed themselves to insult the president as Arūnas Valinskas did in response to President Grybauskaitė’s opinion on the him being minister of culture,” Jurkevičius said.

Given National Resurrection’s low poll numbers and large-scale defection last year, it appears the party’s wave of success has crashed against the shore and many of the show business personalities, including the TV star Valinskas could be consigned to the entertainment world come 2012. [/private_subscription 4 months] [private_subscription 1 year]has neither the skills nor sufficient public standing required to be a minister. The party has been working to replace the current Minister of Culture Remigijus Vilkaitis over the last three weeks after pulling their endorsement of him.

Staponkus teaches singing at the the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theater, where he completed his PhD. The 34-year-old also sits on a council in the culture ministry overseeing arts management.

Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius told local media that he had reservations about the new minister’s status and will meet with him to discuss his potential work in the minister’s role. Staponkus is well-known as a singer, but is inexperienced in politics, he said.

To become a minister, candidates need the formal approval of the president, who oversees the work of the government.

Back to showbiz?

Valinskas, who was previously proposed to Grybauskaitė for the post, was rejected, which caused him to call the president a boba, which translates as “old hag” in English. The day after the outburst, he said he saw no need to apologize, but later retracted the comment.

Kubilius censured the party leader saying that he isn’t cultured and “thought out loud,” adding that Valinskas should watch his tongue in future. Via his spokesman Virginijus Valentinavičius, the prime minister said that now there definitely no reason to allow Valinskas into a position of power after his crude outburst, seen as needlessly antagonizing the popular president who has been an ally of the government while its hold on power remains tenuous.

Kubilius was hardly alone in his criticism of Valinskas — members of the Seimas were highly scornful of the new politician’s break of decorum usually reserved for the Lithuania’s head of state by parliament members.

Homeland Union-Christian Democrat member Evaldas Jurkevičius has called on the Supreme Official Ethics Commission to make a ruling on the affair. Jurkevičius said that politicians could not shoot their mouths off when they felt like it, adding that Valinskas didn’t understand the basics of civilized behavior.

Jurkevičius compared the incident to reactions at the time of the impeachment of the former president. When the impeached President Rolandas Paksas, who now sits in European parliament in Brussels, was kicked out of office, no one said a word out of respect for the position, he said.

“Even when former President Rolandas Paksas had his impeachment, none of the politicians allowed themselves to insult the president as Arūnas Valinskas did in response to President Grybauskaitė’s opinion on the him being minister of culture,” Jurkevičius said.

Given National Resurrection’s low poll numbers and large-scale defection last year, it appears the party’s wave of success has crashed against the shore and many of the show business personalities, including the TV star Valinskas could be consigned to the entertainment world come 2012. [/private_subscription 1 year]

— This is a paid article. To subscribe or extend your subscription, click here.