National Convention splits PDL in two

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A decision on expelling Sever Voinescu could be made next week.

PDL President Vasile Blaga said yesterday the National Coordination Council of PDL would set on February 23 a date for the National Convention (where new leaders could be elected – o.n). ‘The decisions on holding a National Convention of the party and the National Council before that were made by the statutory party bodies and not on the various blogs,’ Mediafax quotes Blaga as having said. The PDL president hinted at the comments posted on the various social networks recently on the fact that PDL leaders are asking for a Convention to be held sooner. Blaga noted that he only had one expectation – that 5,000 people from all PDL structures should participate.As for the particular situation of Sever Voinescu, former party Vice President and Spokesman, Blaga said a debate on the subject would happen in Constanta on Thursday and the following week’s National Standing Bureau (BPN) would make ‘the necessary proposals’. Asked if Voinescu had placed himself outside the party with his recent actions, Blaga answered: ‘I wouldn’t have expected a colleague from the party leadership – he was vice president – to campaign for another party’s candidate.’ He added he did not mean to restrict anyone’s right to an opinion but, from the point of view of the party, the correct thing to do would be for people who have something to say to say in inside the party. PDL MEP Cristian Preda however claims Blaga is not familiar with the party Statute and that Sever Voinescu is a member of the Prahova, not Constanta organisation.  ‘Under the statutes, Blaga will need to go to Ploiesti, not to the seaside,’ Preda states on his blog. ‘Having kept quiet for a month, until people started asking if there was an opposition in Romania, the PDL president returns into the public arena threatening to exclude people without justification under the Statutes. It will be a very difficult political year,’ says the PDL MEP.  Although the side of the PDL heavyweights are trying to stay in position, more and more voices inside the party are demanding Blaga’s resignation. Gabriel Berca joined them yesterday. ‘The National Convention has to be organised as soon as possible. We need new leadership, new faces. If we bring the same people, the only result will be that we will go down to 7 per cent. (…) We need credible people,’ Berca said, according to gandul.info. PDL leaders Raluca Turcan and Traian Igas do not share his opinion, saying ‘it is no rush’ in that respect.