UNPR Interim President Necular Ontanu stated on Monday that PSD President Liviu Dragnea’s recent statements concerning the recruitment of some UNPR MPs have “lowered” his party’s trust in PSD. Consequently, UNPR may support two-round mayoral elections.
“There is certain distrust in our political alliance partners, also generated by the recent statements made by some PSD leaders. (…) We have lowered our trust as a result of Mr. Dragnea’s statements, completely unfair statements that I believe Mr. Dragnea himself regrets, according to which he is trying to recruit MPs from UNPR. No UNPR MP is leaving for PSD, they are all staying within UNPR,” Ontanu said after the meeting held by UNPR’s leadership.
UNPR’s interim president also stated that the party he represents could support in the following period a draft law on two-round mayoral elections, as sought by PNL.
“At county and central levels we have had certain unfriendly statements in what concerns the attitude toward UNPR, and some county branches, some colleagues, have announced that we are not ruling out this option, of backing a law that would entail two-round mayoral elections (…) if such an option is raised in the following period. There were such positions too, that UNPR could support the election of mayors in two rounds,” Ontanu said.
Asked about the PSD-UNPR protocol that was recently concluded, which stipulates that the two parties will not back such a draft law, UNPR leaders explained that they hope PSD will not break the protocol, which would lead to it being denounced.
“We haven’t taken a decision, but we hope the protocol signed with PSD, and which we continue to support, will be carried out in proper conditions of friendship, not of confrontation,” Ontanu added.
Last Thursday, PSD President Liviu Dragnea stated, commenting on Gabriel Oprea’s decision to resign from the helm of UNPR, that he personally regrets the situation Oprea is in and will talk with UNPR’s new interim leader about the future collaboration with this party, but that he sees no reason for it not to continue.
In what concerns the possibility that a number of UNPR MPs could return to PSD, Dragnea said that he too heard these allegations but “for the time being nothing is clear, certain or official.”
Dragnea also commented on the possibility that Oprea’s resignation will affect his party’s local and parliamentary elections results, stating that everything depends “on the way in which the party as a whole will react” and on the way “they reach an agreement within.”
“The reaction of every party member, national and local, matters a lot. They will probably convene a statutory forum in the upcoming period,” Dragnea commented.
Eugen Nicolicea: “This protocol is valid as long as our teammate does not denounce it”
MP Eugen Nicolicea, UNPR Vice President, talked about the relations between PSD and UNPR, stating that the protocol between the two parties is valid as long as “our teammate does not denounce it,” Agerpres informs.
“For us, this protocol is valid as long as our teammate does not denounce it. Therefore, we will support what is written in the protocol, except in case this protocol is denounced by PSD. (…) Please have a look at what it says about parliamentary collaboration, about collaboration between the parties too, and so obviously if there is hostility on the part of a teammate that denounces the protocol, if the protocol no longer exists we would be free to adopt any solution. From a constitutional point of view there is no kind of restriction, one-round or two-round elections (mayoral elections – editor’s note), except in the case of presidential elections which have a runoff. Consequently there is nothing unconstitutional,” Nicolicea said after the meeting of UNPR’s National Executive Committee.
Ioan Iovescu wants to take Oprea’s seat
Senator Ioan Iovescu, Secretary of UNPR’s group, announced his bid for the party’s leadership on Tuesday, stating that he plans to change the party’s name into the Centre Christian Alliance (ACC) and to reform it.
“Analyzing how UNPR formed and developed, I realized it has absorbed several parties and it would be appropriate for this party to take on a new name, and I thought about ACC – the Centre Christian Alliance,” the Secretary of UNPR’s group stated at a press conference in Parliament, being quoted by Mediafax.
Iovescu added that his goal is for the party to be the third strongest party. “It’s good for it to be the third force too, other than UDMR,” Iovescu stated.
The UNPR Senator claimed that he had suggested to former UNPR President Gabriel Oprea, as early as last year, to step down. “Ever since last year I’ve been telling the leadership that Mr. Oprea should, has to take a step back, just like I said within PPDD when I saw there was a decline,” he stated.
Gabriel Oprea announced his resignation from the office of party president last week.
