This doesn't mean that the Civic Democrat (ODS)–led panel, which President Václav Klaus officially appointed Sept. 4 after three months of deadlock following June's general election, isn't accomplishing anything. At least from a political standpoint, that is.

Rather, as the ODS continues to push for a new election, showcasing its most prominent members in ministry posts lets the party put its best foot forward in an effort to appeal to a bigger pool of the electorate.

"Basically, it's a poster government," says Martin Komárek, a commentator for Mladá fronta Dnes. "The ODS will try to hang on to the ministry posts for as long as possible and try to make a favorable impression on voters."

According to analysts, the new Cabinet, made up of nine ODS members and six independents, could constitute a way to kick off the party's campaign.

Prime Minister Mirek Topolánek must gain a vote of confidence from Parliament no later than Oct. 4 in order for the government to stand.

Whatever the outcome, there's still a lot that could be done in less than a month.

A turbulent transition

Slight chaos rules most of the ministries now, as old employees remain in many of the high positions despite new incoming ministers.

The Culture Ministry, for instance, still has ČSSD member Katefiina Kalistová as one of its deputy ministers. Kalistová also happens to be the women and family minister in the ČSSD's shadow Cabinet, which is formed by the opposition party and is meant to mirror the ruling government.

Incoming ministers, especially from the ODS, are finding it difficult to even get in touch with their staff.

New Health Minister Tomáš Julínek, who replaced the controversial David Rath, has had the toughest time of it. Ministry staff members have been essentially hiding from him, refusing to take his calls. This means Julínek hasn't even been able to fire deputies and replace them with his own people.

Twenty deputy ministers throughout the government have been sacked so far.

"All the new ministers are accomplishing is a sort of destabilization," says political analyst Zdeněk Zbofiil. He says the new government will have very little time to accomplish anything, aside from perhaps drafting a new state budget.

But a little shakeup of the ministries might not hurt, says Zbofiil. "A lot of these people have been in their posts since the Social Democrats first came to power eight years ago. The ministries have become very stale, so it's just as well that some people are finally getting sacked."

Although the new Cabinet doesn't have a popular mandate, there are other changes, some dramatic, with which they might make some headway.

For instance, new Interior Minister Ivan Langer, who is also doubling as the country's information technology minister, plans to abolish the IT Ministry altogether, folding most of its functions into the Interior Ministry.

Langer says he plans a major overhaul of the latter ministry, a governing body some call "the ministry of fear."

"It's time to fix the leaky ship," he says, but adds that he doesn't plan on firing the scandal-plagued police president, Vladislav Husák, for now.

No surprises

Pundits agree that the newly appointed Cabinet has yielded few surprises. From the ranks of the ODS, Topolánek selected his most prominent party members.

People like Justice Minister Jifií Pospíšil and Health Minister Julínek were part of the ODS shadow Cabinet under the previous ČSSD-led government. Petr Nečas, the new labor and social affairs minister, has been deputy chairman of the ODS since 1999.

Regional Development Minister Petr Gandalovič, meanwhile, got his post as a reward for faring so well in the June election, when he ran against then-Prime Minister and ČSSD head Jifií Paroubek in the Ústí nad Labem region. He lost to Paroubek by less than 1 percent.

"That was a remarkable achievement," says Zbofiil. "It's clearly the reason why Topolánek chose him for the ministry post."

The six ministers who are independents are even more interesting.

Two of them, Environment Minister Petr Kalaš and Culture Minister Martin Štěpánek fled the country during the communist regime and lived abroad for many years. Such returning Czechs have not always found their homeland welcoming since 1989, as many locals seem to resent their absence during oppressive times.

"It's a little unusual," says Vladimíra Dvofiáková, a political science lecturer at the Prague University of Economics. "But there is no law against it." She says this isn't the first time an émigré has headed a ministry. The first was Pavel Tigrid, who served as culture minister under Václav Klaus' government in the 1990s.

Štěpánek, a German citizen who immigrated there in the 1980s, is an actor, a journalist and a card-carrying Freemason. He says he plans to apply for Czech citizenship.

Kalaš, who holds Czech and Swiss citizenship, is less well-known. He has worked as a technical coordinator for the World Bank for the past few years.

Dvofiáková says the independent ministers were chosen with the knowledge that even if Topolánek were to miraculously gain support from his government — which could only happen if a majority in the 200-member Chamber of Deputies voted in its favor — they would eventually be replaced.

"Being a good minister has less to do with your knowledge or education and more to do with your ability to surround yourself with capable people," says Komárek, the Mladá fronta Dnes commentator. "Above all, a minister has to be a good manager."