Ilie Bolojan, firm message for the party that wants “puppet premiers”: “At least have the dignity to say”

Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan sent, on Thursday evening, a firm message for the Social-Democratic Party, against the background of the submission of the joint censure motion with AUR: “Let them say who is the prime minister of this coalition and what are their solutions.”

The head of the government spoke, on the podcast The News Man, made on YouTube by the journalist Radu Andrei Tudor, and about the possibility of the National Liberal Party going into opposition, if the censure motion passes, but he firmly rejected any form of collaboration with the formation led by Sorin Grindeanu for a possible new governing coalition, accusing the social democrats of “making fun” of the current coalition and of wanting “puppet awards”.

Asked if he “sees himself in the opposition”, the prime minister replied: “I don't see any problem with being in the opposition and think that, given the experience we have accumulated, I have a duty to those who voted for us, to the Romanians who work every day or who have worked all their lives and are retired, to our children, to build healthy alternatives to give these people a reason to go to the polls and cast a vote thinking of Romania a modern, honest Romania, where the state creates conditions for you to value your work, your talent. Not a state that promises you everything if you vote for a certain political party. A state and a political world that lies to you and postpones your promises.

“It's hard to sit at the table with someone who humiliates you”

Asked about the possibility of the PNL continuing to discuss with the PSD about a new government, Ilie Bolojan stated: “In order to be able to discuss with someone about one project or another, there must be a minimum of trust, there must be the conviction that that person, that party is still thinking about a generous project for the community, a common project for the country, and there must be a history that at least begins to validate these good intentions. Or, consider that in the conditions in which they are being dynamited, in a crisis situation, a government of which you were part, in which you participated in all the decisions – I emphasize -, without putting anything in place, without coming up with a proposal for a prime minister, without coming up with a program proposal of 3-4 basic ideas in which you say that “we will do this differently from what has been done so far, these are the solutions”, so without coming up with anything, it means that the general project part is not common. It is difficult to say that you are pro-European if you act against European Romania, Romania that is modernizing. That's a problem”.

“It's hard to sit at the table with someone who has shown you several times that he doesn't respect you, that he doesn't have any respect. (…) If one of the two people or parties in a relationship trashes you, tries to humiliate you, tries to disrespect you – how will you trust him that you will have a good relationship. Either PSD, unfortunately, behaved in an arrogant manner all this time, in an unacceptable manner, you cannot establish the leadership of a party than in the leadership offices of that party. If it is established in other parts, it means that that party becomes an annex. And of course, PSD would like to sign for the bill, but the people who are good at it, from the PSD leadership, would definitely want an annex type party and if the PNL would accept such a situation, the fate of the PNȚCD would follow – I didn't say that, political people who have experience said it, and you don't have to be a great political analyst to understand that the electorate must have a reason to vote for you, at least have a minimum trust in you that you will behave predictably. The PNL must behave predictably, work for Romania, respect its constituents,” he continued.

Message for PSD

For the PSD, in the context of the collaboration with the AUR for the censure motion, Bolojan wanted to convey a message.

“At least have the dignity to say who is the prime minister of this coalition and what are their solutions, because otherwise it is abnormal to demolish without putting anything in place or to say that you want to form a coalition with those you mocked and thus mocking the situation in which Romania finds itself,” said the PNL leader.

In parallel with The News Man Podcast, the president of PSD, Sorin Grindeanu, makes statements on Antena 3 CNN on Thursday evening.

The latest calculations

Earlier on Thursday, PSD leaders met in a meeting of the National Political Bureau to determine the last details regarding the censure motion that will be debated and voted on on Tuesday, May 5. They were confident that the no-confidence motion would pass, some even saying it would get more votes than signatures. However, the liberals warn that there is also the possibility that the motion will fail, because not all those who signed it will vote for it.

At the end of Thursday's meeting, Marian Neacșu, the one who, by the way, announced the submission of the censure motion in a joint press conference with Petrișor Peiu, said that negotiations had been held with other parliamentarians for “two or three days”.

“We are discussing with the parliamentarians strictly on principle,” said the former PSD deputy prime minister in a press statement given in the halls of the Parliament.

He also hinted that he is certain that the motion of censure will pass because “254 MPs signed the motion.” A motion of no confidence needs 233 votes to pass.

Instead, Gabriel Andronache, who is the leader of the PNL deputies, said on Tuesday morning through a post on Facebook that the liberals are making “all the democratic steps in the Parliament to support the Bolojan Government and determine the failure of the censure motion”.

“Not everyone who signs a motion votes it. There are MPs who were forced to sign the motion, even if they don't agree with PSD and AUR throwing the country into chaos,” Andronache warned.

He also said that there are also social democratic MPs who oppose the motion. “They have the opportunity to express themselves at the vote, because the vote is secret and cannot be controlled by the party leadership. It is not at all clear that this motion will get the necessary number of votes on May 5,” added the liberal.

Anamaria Gavrilă, the leader of the POT, said on Tuesday that although the MPs of the formation have signed the motion, they do not guarantee that they will vote for it.

PNL, USR and UDMR, the parties that announced that they continue to support Ilie Bolojan, have only 164 MPs in Parliament out of the 233 required for a majority. The 17 deputies of the National Minorities are added to them. That would lead to a total of 181 votes, still insufficient to support Bolojan in Parliament.

The motion, signed by 254 parliamentarians, was submitted on Tuesday, after it was announced in a joint press conference by Marian Neacșu and Petrișor Peiu.

Sorin Grindeanu has stated several times that he wants to continue governing in a pro-European formula and that he rules out a coalition with the AUR.