The Social Democrat PM Victor Ponta
Tuesday faced another no-confidence motion, the fourth so far. As expected, the
275 votes required for the motion to pass were not gathered, so the Romanian
Government stays in office. The argument put forth by the main party in
opposition, the National Liberal Party, had to do with the prime minister’s
legal problems. The Liberals argued that Victor Ponta can no longer head the
government, because he lost his credibility after being sent to court by the
National Anti-Corruption Directorate under corruption charges. Forgery of
private documents, accessory to tax evasion and money laundering are the
charges brought against him in a case involving legal assistance contracts
signed by the Turceni and Rovinari power companies in the south of the country.
In Parliament, Alina Gorghiu, the co-president of the National Liberal Party in
Opposition said before the vote that Victor Ponta was a prime minister who
could no longer represent Romania with dignity:
Victor Ponta will leave
his seat, sooner or later. And by the time local elections are held, we will
have a new PM, because you will not be able to protect him forever. Eventually,
you will have to release him from office. But my colleagues and I call on you
to do it now, to do it today, while the wounds he has caused can still be
repaired. Obviously, you, the MPs from the Social Democratic Party, the
National Union for the Progress of Romania and the Alliance of Liberals and
Democrats, will tell me that keeping Victor Ponta in office is fully democratic
and constitutional. It is. But it is also deeply immoral and completely
unfair.
Ponta has repeatedly dismissed the
accusations and has turned down President Klaus Iohannis and the Liberal
Opposition’s calls for his resignation. On Tuesday he told Parliament that he
did not see this as a no-confidence motion, because he was not criticized for
the activity of his Cabinet. He said that the national economy was growing, and
Romania was a source of stability in the region.
I was prepared for a
no-confidence motion with figures, economic data, social and legislative
measures. But given that the Opposition has nothing critical about the
government to say, I don’t think I need to present them once again here. I
believe the intention of the National Liberal Party and Liberal Democratic
Party, namely to hide behind prosecutors, to wait them to do the Opposition’s
job in their place, is fundamentally wrong, has nothing to do with the
principles of democracy, and I also believe that in Parliament we are in charge
of politics, not justice.
The ruling partners of the Social
Democratic Party said the motion was based on political reasons and attended
the meeting, but did not vote.
