Bratislava, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico survived a no-confidence vote n Thursday as the opposition failed to get enough votes.

 

 This meeting was presented by 142 deputies out of the 150-seat parliament. Fico was supported by 82 deputies, reported Xinhua.

 

 The opposition tried to topple Fico and his one-party cabinet by the cabinet's decision to buy the share the Czech Energeticky a prumyslovy holding (EPH) group had in the SPP, Slovakia's major gas utility.

 

 The opposition says the transaction is disadvantageous for Slovakia in view of the SPP's financial loss in selling gas to households, which reached 76 million euros (about $100 million) last year.

 

 Late Tuesday, the stormy debate in Slovak parliament developed into a brawl of deputies over a paper figure of Fico which the opposition placed at the rostrum after Fico left the session and which Smer-SD deputies, allegedly encouraged by alcohol, removed.

 

IANS