Minister of Justice, Radu Marinescu. Photo: Inquam Photos / George Călin
Radu Marinescu, the Minister of Justice, says that, through Wednesday's decision of the Constitutional Court regarding the magistrates' pension law, we have a “finality” and he told the magistrates that “they have every reason to stay in the system”.
The judges of the Constitutional Court decided on Wednesday, after five adjournments, that the law increasing the retirement age of magistrates and reducing the amount of service pension is constitutional. The decision was taken by 6 votes to 3. Now, the project proposed by the Bolojan Government will go to the president for promulgation.
In a first reaction, the Minister of Justice, Radu Marinescu, declared, on Digi24, that “we really needed this procedure to be finalized”.
“We really needed there to be a finality to this procedure which involved practically all the components of the Romanian state and equally aroused a lot of emotion in our society – starting from the government, which initiated a project, parliament which assumed it in the procedure as quickly as possible, precisely to respond to some expectations that also come from the European Commission”, declared Radu Marinescu, to Digi24.
“It is very good that we have a finality, that we now have certainty regarding the status prospects for one of the most important professions in Romania. From now on, we must go together, through loyal cooperation, to make justice more efficient, to act in the interest of the citizen”, Radu Marinescu also said.
Asked if he fears that people could leave the system and what message he has for magistrates, the Minister of Justice replied:
“My message to the magistrates is that, in the end, the execution of the act of justice is even more than a profession, it is a true apostolate. These people entered their profession to do justice, to fight against inequities, to respond to a supreme value in the rule of law which is justice. And then I ask them to remain devoted to the initial creed that animated them to enter this profession, to continue to remain in the profession bringing the special experience of age, previous professionalism”, Radu Marinescu also conveyed.
“In the current law, those who have already met the conditions for retirement are protected in the sense that they will retire, they have the conditions already recognized, in accordance with the previous law. And then they have every reason to stay in the system, to contribute, to make further efforts to make the judicial activity better. Once again, I see things in the future – the conclusion of a loyal cooperation between the institutions and the state powers. A constitutional dispute has ended,” added Radu Marinescu.
