Speaker Ciolacu says PSD to submit motion of censure on August 17

Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies Marcel Ciolacu, the acting national leader of the Social Democratic Party (PSD), announced on Wednesday that PSD will submit a motion of censure against the government on August 17, saying that Romania is a "country floating aimlessly,' with a government of "zero credibility."

"On August 17, the Social Democratic Party will table the motion of censure. We consider that it is time for you to go home or go to prison, depending on everyone's actions," Ciolacu told a plenary sitting of Parliament after Prime Minister Ludovic Orban released a report on measures to contain the novel coronavirus epidemic.

He accused the Prime Minister of "knowingly sabotaging the health of Romanians."

"Damage in excess of 650 million lei, over 800 violations found by the Court of Auditors in the state of emergency only. God knows what followed in the next 60 days, under the state of alert. This is Romania led by you," added Ciolacu.

He also told the Prime Minister to clearly shoulder responsibility for the organisation of local elections in safe conditions and to tell Romanians how children will go to school on September 14.

"There is only one month until the beginning of school year, you wasted all summer and did nothing, only colourful scenarios. (...) How will you send the children to the school, how will you secure remote instruction? (...). There are over 1 million unemployed, hundreds of thousands of Romanian entrepreneurs have closed or diminished business, millions of Romanians left without access to the healthcare system, the whole country turned upside down in only nine months," the PSD leader added.