Senator Basescu: It's necessary that President Iohannis makes a political decision in Kovesi's case

Senator Traian Basescu, leader of the PMP (People's Movement Party) says that the head of the state must make a political decision in what Laura Codruta Kovesi is concerned, by considering first the impact that his decision will have on Romania. 

"No, he won't remove her, when right now Romania's image is the one reflected by the Greco report. (...) The President cannot base his decision on just the realities discovered in the latest while. The President must also take into account the impact that this decision will have on Romania. (...) Therefore, I believe that Iohannis must make a political decision. He must think what is best for Romania, for this is how a President must think, he must think not what it's right, but what it's necessary," Traian Basescu told Romania TV on Sunday, referring to the decision that Klaus Iohannis is expected to make with respect to the removal from office of the chief-prosecutor of the DNA (National Anti-corruption Directorate), Laura Codruta Kovesi. 

When he was asked whether, in this context, the head of the state would prove that he remains "deaf" to the irregularities discovered in the system, he said: "We have the courts for these matters." 

"We have the Judicial Inspection for now, we have institutions that manage certain activities. We have the Prahova statements and he cannot avoid his responsibility, since it happened in the institution that he leads, or in Bihor or Brasov, or in Constanta or with various prosecutors that committed huge abuses, but all these are administrative decisions. At some point, all these must be referred to a court, for Mrs. Kovesi too must answer before the court. However, until then, we are discussing about an impression that is still valid, which is that the current power wrongly wants to remove from office the fighter against corruption, the justice goddess, Laura Codruta Kovesi. For this reason I won't remove her, for I would bring damage to Romania," said the PMP leader. 

Basescu also said that the risk of total discreditation of Romania is higher than the risk of maintaining Kovesi at the DNA helm. 

Asked whether, in his opinion, Laura Codruta Kovesi should have thought of resigning, the PMP leader said: "Definitely yes, this would have been the most elegant solution to this dilemma." 

On March 23, President Klaus Iohannis, while in Brussels, stated that he would most probably make the decision to remove the DNA chief, Laura Codruta Kovesi, from office, after the Easter holiday. And he also said, at that time, that he specified in taking this decision, he will get "inspiration" from the documents that both parties submitted to him.