PSD's Ciolacu: Without coronavirus pressure, politicians might have had more time to play

The interim chair of the Social Democrat Party (PSD), Marcel Ciolacu, stated, on Sunday evening, that the investiture vote for the Orban II Government is a "masquerade" and reiterated that it's out of the question for the Social-Democrats to vote for a minority National Liberal Party (PNL) Government, stating that politicians don't have "time to play", given the pressure of the coronavirus appearing.

"I don't know, I feel ashamed now, it's like we have a parallel agenda once more. People have their agenda, Romanians are scared and we politicians keep having a parallel agenda, especially a masquerade (...) There is no way for a political party to propose to the President for designation a Prime Minister and in the same political meeting decide you will not vote for him. This is a masquerade," Ciolacu told private TV broadcaster Antena 3.

The PSD leader added that the PSD MPs will come to work on Monday, will be present in the parliamentary groups, and their position to not participate in the investiture vote of the Orban II Government is shared by MPs from other parties.

"It's not a boycott per se. I made a complaint with the CCR [Constitutional Court], a suspicion of a certain conflict of a constitutional nature and we're waiting for the answer. The masquerade would be even bigger if the CCR says that the President of Romania shouldn't have designated Mr. Orban again, who is also interim and demoted prime minister. Now he is prime minister-designate as well. (...) Let the CCR enlighten us and we'll make a decision afterwards," said Marcel Ciolacu.

Ciolacu mentioned that in the context of the emergence of the coronavirus, politicians don't have time "to play" anymore, and resource allotment cannot be legally carried out with an interim government and a dissolved parliament if there were to be a crisis determined by a coronavirus epidemic.

"If we suspend Parliament too, we dissolve it, it doesn't mean it's going home. If it's dissolved, Parliament can't issue organic laws, only ordinary laws. If there's need for money, resources to be moved to Mr. Arafat [e.n. - head of the Department for Emergency Situations], for him to manage this crisis, if we have a demoted government and dissolved parliament, it can't be legally carried out," the PSD leader stated.

He said it's "a matter of days until a coronavirus infection case appears in Romania, given Romanians' second motherland has become Italy," adding that he doesn't know if at this moment the authorities in Romania are ready to handle such a situation.

Asked if this crisis spurred by the coronavirus resets the political situation until now, Ciolacu answered yes. "Yes, of course. The agenda of Romanians is already... It's not only the coronavirus, I say again, look what's happening with the euro, look at the major [economic] slippages," Ciolacu said. He reiterated that the devaluation of the leu in relation to the euro is the effect of a disastrous mismanagement of the current government, firstly of the Finance Minister. AGERPRES