President might be suspended following his statements on radio

According to a press release issued by the leaders of the Democratic Social Party (PSD), National Liberal Party (PNL) and Conservative Party (PC), they asked their parties’ legal experts to prepare for Monday an evaluation report about the possibility of starting the suspension procedures, following the president’s statements about freezing pensions.

"We felt indignation and concern when we learned that through his new statements made on the public radio station, President Traian Băsescu explicitly announced his refusal to apply the law that provides the annual indexation of pensions, as well as the final and definitive rulings in the trials won by teachers and other state employees (the rulings were given in favour of applying the law promulgated by the president himself!)".

"This refusal will persist even after a possible ruling of the Constitutional Court that obliges the state to apply that law. This is an extremely irresponsible and dangerous attitude because it confirms the president’s message about the abolishment of the rule of law in Romania", Victor Ponta, Crin Antonescu and Daniel Costantin said in the press release.

The leaders of PSD, PNL and PC added that "these signals come from a larger series of actions taken lately by President Traian Băsescu", which they consider "unconstitutional".

"Considering this, we have asked our parties’ legal experts to prepare a detailed report on these serious actions that we consider they break the provisions of the Constitution of Romania for the USL’s weekly meeting, which will take place on Monday."

"The report will have to contain an evaluation of these actions, as well as the extent to which they can be grounds for suspending Traian Băsescu, in accordance with the Article 95 of the Constitution of Romania."

"We mention that if the judicial and political analysis leads us to the conclusion that the actions constitute a breaking of the constitutional order, USL will not hesitate to start the procedures for Traian Băsescu’s suspension, even without the majority in the Parliament", the leaders of PSD, PNL and PC concluded.

President Traian Băsescu stated on Radio România Actualităţi on Wednesday that regardless of the ruling given by the Constitutional Court on freezing wages and pensions in 2012, "there is no money left", adding that "if there was, we would pay".

"Regardless of the ruling given by the Constitutional Court, there is no money. If there was, we would pay", president Traian Băsescu said about the law that provides the freezing of pensions and wages in 2012 and which has been contested by the opposition in the Constitutional Court.

"People must understand that we cannot go on borrowing money for consumption. Politically speaking, it would be very easy for me and the government to pretend to be generous, condemning the country to poverty for the next years", Traian Băsescu said.

The head of the state added that "until the next selections, one can survive by doing demagogic things".

He underlined that he "has gone through this experience before", in 2007-2008 and that lessons must be learned from that experience.

Translated by: Camelia-Aura Barbu
MA Student, MTTLC, Bucharest University