*Dragnea: “How could we do this when we don’t have the election results officialised?”
PSD President Liviu Dragnea (photo) announced on Tuesday that the party he leads will not honour the invitation extended by President Klaus Iohannis to take part in consultations on forming the Government, because PSD wants to respect the Constitution.
PSD President Liviu Dragnea stated that he will not take part in the consultations at the Presidential Palace only in order to carry out imagination exercises. “We cannot honour an invitation that is based on the wrong article of the Constitution. It’s strange that non-parliamentary parties are being called for consultations. PSD respects the Constitution. How could we show up with a nomination while the MPs are not validated? PSD will not rush any overture,” Liviu Dragnea stated on Tuesday, several hours after President Klaus Iohannis invited political parties to consultations on Wednesday.
Liviu Dragnea added that Article 85 of the Constitution, on which the invitation is based, also stipulates the appointment of the Government after its confirmation in Parliament. “How could we do this when we don’t even have the election results officialised?”
Asked whether he called Klaus Iohannis to tell him he will not show up for consultations, Dragnea said: “I can’t take the liberty to do this. I will send an official address, just like I received one from the President.”
“We talked about this invitation within the party. I believe that the Romanian President should have a serious talk with those who proposed basing the invitation on Article 85 of the Constitution. We cannot take part in these consultations because, as I’ve permanently said during the campaign and on election day, we want to strictly respect the constitutional provisions,” Dragnea said.
He pointed out that Article 85 of the Constitution, which stipulates that the Romanian President appoints a candidate for the Prime Minister’s office and appoints the Government on the basis of Parliament’s vote of confidence, can only be followed by the issuance of a decree convening Parliament.
Dragnea emphasised that, in his opinion, consultations can take place only on the basis of Article 103, which talks about the majorities established in Parliament, and only after each MP is validated.
“We find it strange that parties that are not in parliament at this moment, or tomorrow when the consultation should take place, and I’m talking about USR and PMP, are invited at the consultations. Tomorrow (Wednesday – editor’s note) the current Parliament is in operation,” Dragnea said.
He added that PSD will not take part in the consultations just to exercise its imagination.
“The Constitution does not say consultations can take place just to see what the political parties are imagining. I believe that after each Lower Chamber and Senate member is validated and sworn in, and Parliament is formed, consultations can take place and we will take part in them with all openness. We cannot honour this invitation based on the wrong article of the Constitution,” Dragnea added.
PNL’s Turcan on party’s mandate at consultations: A criminally convicted person is not fit for Prime Minister
The acting leader of the National Liberal Party (PNL) has stated on Tuesday that the Liberals will first present to President Klaus Iohannis their mandate for the Cotroceni consultations, but mentioned that her political party believes that a person who was handed down a final criminal conviction is not fit to be Prime Minister.
“I have received President Klaus Iohannis’s invitation. The National Political Bureau decided to grant me the mandate for these consultations (…). Our mandate will be presented first to President Klaus Iohannis. There are two things that PNL cannot ignore and regarding which it will not compromise. The first is that a person with a final criminal conviction is not fit to hold the office of Prime Minister,” Turcan said at the end of the National Political Bureau meeting.
She added that the second thing PNL will not compromise on is for Parliament to make laws for particular persons.
“We firmly reject the Romanian Parliament’s turning into an institution that makes laws for the profit of certain persons. This is what destroyed us, this is what brought us to the current living standard, this is what disappointed people and drew them away from the political class,” Raluca Turcan said.
ALDE deems President’s invitation to consultations premature; will attend after new Parliament convenes
The Alliance of Liberals and Democrats (ALDE) deem the invitation made by President Klaus Iohannis to participate on Wednesday to consultations in view of forming the new Government is premature and mentioned that they will attend after the new Parliament convenes, the MP seats are validated and after an absolute majority is established either by a single party, or by an alliance.
“ALDE took notice of the invitation made by President Klaus Iohannis to attend, tomorrow, December 14, consultations in view of forming the Government. ALDE appreciates the President’s initiative, but deems it to be premature. ALDE believes that the wisest path to take now is the one indicated by the text of the Constitution,” reads a release remitted to AGERPRES on Tuesday.
According to ALDE, the new Parliament will be validated at the beginning of next week.
“Once the new Parliament is validated at the beginning of next week, it will be clear if a political party holds an absolute majority or if an alliance of parties will constitute such a majority. In both cases, the said party or coalition will have the constitutional mission, mentioned in decision 80/2014 of the Constitutional Court, to indicate to the President the name of the candidate for the position of Prime Minister (‘The President of Romania cannot have the role of decision-maker in such a procedure, but of arbitrator and mediator between political forces, and merely has the competence of designating as candidate the representative proposed by the political alliance or political party holding the absolute majority of parliamentary seats’)”, the quoted source mentions.
ALDE claims that “respect towards procedures is a mandatory prerequisite of a democratic regime”.
“As respect towards procedures is a mandatory prerequisite of a democratic regime, ALDE representatives will answer with maximum solicitude to the invitation of the President of Romania to participate in consultations in view of forming the new Government after the convening of Parliament, the validation of the MP seats and the establishment of an absolute majority by either a single party, or an alliance of parties,” the release also shows.
Traian Basescu: PMP will take part in consultations. President’s action is legitimate
The Popular Movement Party (PMP) will take part in the consultations at the Presidential Palace, PMP President Traian Basescu stated on Tuesday, adding that the Head of State’s overture is legitimate and constitutional.
“It’s normal to hold consultations, it’s constitutional. As a parliamentary party, PMP will take part in them. We will do our duty as parliamentary party and will take part in consultations. And, on the other hand, I consider the President’s action to hold consultations absolutely legitimate and constitutional,” Traian Basescu stated, Agerpres informs.
He pointed out that the mandate with which PMP leaders will go at the Presidential Palace is yet to be decided.
Nicusor Dan: We’ll vote against PSD-ALDE Gov’t regardless of who is its PM
Save Romania Union (USR) President Nicusor Dan labelled President Klaus Iohannis’s reaction as coherent, against the backdrop in which the Head of State pointed out that the integrity criteria he announced before the start of the elections campaign remain standing in what concerns the appointment of the Premier.
“I saw the President’s reaction today, I found it to be very coherent, and I’m telling you honestly that I liked it,” Nicusor Dan stated in an interview for ‘Gandul’ daily.
Likewise, he admitted that USR’s nomination for the Premier’s office remains a purely theoretical one. Nicusor Dan reiterated his belief that Dacian Ciolos would have been a very good option for Romania.
At the same time, he stated that he did not talk with Premier Ciolos after the elections. “I believe I understand Dacian Ciolos well – in a way we have the same profile. He is not a man of great effusion. Somehow, it’s understandable: in a way, we were partners in this attempt. We did what each of us thought appropriate. (…) You should know I have friends I consider very good friends and with whom I’m not talking for five years but when I meet them we are in very good relations. It’s a way of being,” he said.
The USR leader also pointed out that the party’s MPs will vote against a PSD-ALDE Government regardless of its Premier.
“Given everything it does, given everything it did when it was in Government, given everything PSD is doing within Bucharest’s General Council, within the local councils, PSD is not the happy alternative,” he pointed out.
According to him, USR wants to collaborate with Dacian Ciolos in the future, bearing in mind that he has been at the helm of the Government for one year, and, from this position, he met many competent people.
“I am in favour of stability in the long term. I’ve heard Dacian Ciolos at GDS [Group for Social Dialogue], a week ago, saying that apart from the option – which did not come to fruition – of him continuing as Prime Minister, and apart from finishing his term as Prime Minister, he hasn’t thought about the possibility of becoming member of the party. I’m convinced that he needs time to reflect on this. What we said (…) was that, in case he wants to join USR, the door is open,” he stated.
In what concerns PNL, Nicusor Dan estimated that, bearing in mind it is a political party that has fallen from 30 to 20 percent, “strong internal tensions” will follow.
“What I can comment is that their activity within the General Council and the local councils in Bucharest is decent. As the Opposition, their activity in Bucharest is decent. (…) We are open to project-based collaboration with anyone. If there are projects we come up with, we will discuss with anyone. If there are good projects proposed by anyone, including by PSD, we will discuss them,” he added.
President Iohannis on PSD and ALDE refusal to participate to consultations on Wednesday: An impolite attitude
President Klaus Iohannis stated on Tuesday that the Social Democratic Party (PSD) and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats (ALDE) refusal to participate in the consultations at the Cotroceni represents an impolite attitude.
“It was correctly interpreted (the article of the Constitution- e.n.). It’s simply an impolite attitude. I can’t figure out what they want to gain. I believe they are wrong,” the head of state said before attending the event organized by the Embassy of Italy at the “Saint Joseph” Cathedral in Bucharest.
