PSD senator Robert Cazanciuc: Start of year to be under sign of social conflict

Social Democratic Party (PSD) Senator Robert Cazanciuc told a Wednesday's press conference that the start of the year will be under the sign of social conflict, because a governing coalition was established without taking into account the vote of Romanians.

"As we anticipated at the end of last year, the start of the year will be under the sign of social conflict. When you establish a governing coalition without taking into account the vote as a whole, social conflicts obviously arise. If President Iohannis had taken into account the vote of the Romanians and offered the PSD the mandate to form a government, we would probably have avoided those conflicts that bring people to the streets today, because the priorities of a coalition around PSD would certainly have been different. Not to draw lots, because we have now come to draw lots for leadership positions,"the senator said.

Cazanciuc said he found it "interesting" that the first protests this year were not about raising salaries, but about education.

"What I found interesting is that we are not lost, as a people, because the first protests this year were not about raising salaries, but about education. I was somehow filled with joy that people took to the streets to defend the teachers who are abused today, pushed out of the schools where they have taught for years, without any explanation. People want to defend their teachers, which seemed fabulous to us, as a nation. (...) Today the Constitutional Court declared the 40% increase in pensions constitutional. (...) This coalition is moving forward, pursuing its political interests without connection with the wishes of the Romanians", the parliamentarian said.

He also mentioned among the dissatisfactions of the Romanians the fact that the law on increasing public sector salaries is not observed, the "explosion" of fuel prices, the conditions of housing purchase for young people and lack of support for farmers. Those, in his opinion, will lead to social conflicts this year.