At the start of the parliamentary session, PNL will file with the Speakers of the two Chambers a demand for the dismissal of Ombudsman Victor Ciorbea (photo) to be discussed during the first joint plenum meeting.
“We’ve decided to start the overtures for the dismissal of the Ombudsman. Mr. Victor Ciorbea does not respect the law on whose basis the Ombudsman operates. Mr. Victor Ciorbea has politicised this institution and has behaved like a PSD vassal, as a humble enforcer of PSD’s interests. We will demand the start of dismissal procedures. A professional person of moral integrity, a person that would first of all respect the people, should end up holding the Ombudsman office,” PNL President Raluca Turcan stated.
The Ombudsman’s lack of reaction toward the ordinance on mayors switching political parties and his decision to attack at the Constitutional Court the law that bans convicted persons from being members of Government are among the reasons why Liberals believe Ciorbea should be dismissed.
After the Ombudsman attacked law no.90/2001, whose provisions prevented Liviu Dragnea from becoming Premier, a wave of resignation requests came crashing down on Victor Ciorbea. Even an online petition was launched, registering a record-number of signatures in less than 24 hours.
Victor Ciorbea’s reaction to these requests was: “Poor people who know not what this is about and didn’t have the patience nor the interest to read the exception I formulated!”
Turcan: PNL will “immediately” file censure motion
PNL’s merger commission has decided that the party will file a censure motion in case the Grindeanu Government adopts the emergency ordinances on the granting of pardons and the amending of the Criminal Codes. Raluca Turcan made the announcement on Thursday: “We will do this immediately if the Government issues the ordinance and, likewise, during the parliamentary session.”
According to her, the censure motion is called for because the controversial ordinances “are not part of the governing platform PSD was invested with,” and there was no talk about granting pardons and amending the Criminal Codes at the ministers’ confirmation hearings either, nor was there any such talk during the elections campaign.
“The purpose of the censure motion is to draw the public opinion’s attention to the fact that the current Government is backsliding from the assumed governing platform. The Government’s decision that the granting of pardons for political cronies should take priority before the state budget shows that the Government is not preoccupied with real problems, but is instead preoccupied with the interests of those who gravitate around the decisional group,” PNL’s acting president said.
In what concerns the conditions in penitentiaries, PNL proposes the setting up of a parliamentary committee, and during the debate on the 2017 budget will come up with “amendments for the improvement of detention conditions.” The measures considered include doubling the food rations and hiking the probation personnel. “We warn that PSD and Liviu Dragnea are talking about the conditions in penitentiaries, however they did nothing to hike state budget funds,” Turcan said.
According to PNL’s acting president, if the Save Romania Union (USR) files a simple motion on the judiciary, PNL MPs will back it. “I don’t think we should have political vanities. I’m calling on all those who can to support our censure motion. We have information that a third of PSD [MPs] are worried by PSD’s backsliding. Those who want to be on an equal footing with honest people should come at the motion,” Turcan stated.
PNL’s acting president also said that the collection of signatures for the possible filing of the censure motion will start once the parliamentary session starts and that talks with the representatives of the Popular Movement Party (PMP) have not started so far.
