USR leader: “I would rather cut off my hand than vote for Predoiu as prime minister.” The senator accuses an “unsuccessful putsch” in the PNL
USR has nothing “to do” in government without a very clear reform program, USR senator Cristian Ghinea said on Wednesday, who claimed that, personally, he would “cut off his hand” rather than vote for Cătălin Predoiu as prime minister.
“Our position is as clear as before, the Political Committee unanimously decided that we will continue to collaborate with PNL, that we must be in solidarity with Prime Minister Bolojan and that we refuse to negotiate with PSD at this time.
The only way to collaborate with the PSD would be for Bolojan to be the prime minister, let's go back to the government program, let's see what can be done, if we want to restore this so-called pro-European coalition, but it's very difficult in the context of what happened yesterday”, said Ghinea, at the Parliament, quoted by Agerpres.
Asked if the USR is also considering entering the opposition from this moment, he said: “The logical conclusion is, obviously, that is, without a very clear reform program we have nothing to do in the government and with this PSD and rabid, on the one hand, and which is on the way after the motion, I don't see how we would reform the government, and the participation of the USR in a coalition and a non-reformist Government would be political suicide.”
“So, I, personally, prefer to go into opposition than to kill ourselves politically for such a government,” the parliamentarian said.
“No Dan was the godfather of the coalition”
He added that he would reproach President Nicușor Dan for not intervening on time in the problems of the governing coalition.
“Nicușor Dan was the political godfather of this coalition and, after giving birth to it, he was completely disinterested in its operation. It is far too late to intervene, he should have done it earlier (…) there were months when the PSD did not want us to fulfill the governing program”, explained Cristian Ghinea.
In his opinion, Nicușor Dan's analysis according to which the formation of a pro-European coalition is aimed at is “false”, because “PSD is not a pro-European party”.
“We must have alternatives for a reformist government, because that would mean a minority government, that would mean a government supported by a part of the sovereignists, there are different kinds of alternatives. Making an obsession out of rebuilding the coalition with the PSD as proposed by Nicușor Dan is a very bad idea,” the USR senator noted.
Ghinea talks about a coup in the PNL
On the other hand, he claimed that the Tuesday meeting of the PNL leadership was “an unsuccessful coup”.
“I think that yesterday we witnessed an unsuccessful coup in the PNL, because, immediately after the censure motion, Mr. Predoiu quickly jumped to the press to spin himself as prime minister.
In a coordinated way, several leaders, supported or coordinated by Thuma from the PNL, came out on Facebook, which in the meeting of the PNL leaders caused stupor, nerves and had the opposite effect: they showed solidarity with Ilie Bolojan, this is what several PNL leaders told me today. That is, it was a putsch coordinated by Predoiu and which failed.
I, personally, would cut off my hand rather than vote for a Prime Minister Predoiu. Predoiu is the most utilitarian of the current PNL ministers who participated in all the mess made by Ciolacu and Ciucă: blowing up the budget and justice laws. So, if USR wants to vote for a Prime Minister Predoiu without me, but I don't think USR would do such a thing, because I know my colleagues and I trust them, we will not vote for a Prime Minister Predoiu”, added Ghinea.
According to him, the version of a technocratic Government proved “a failed experiment”, because technocrats do not reform, only politicians do.
According to him, PNL and USR are “inevitably” heading towards an alliance in 2028. “It depends on the colleagues from PNL if they want to be part of this alliance or we will do something with Mr. Bolojan separately. In the medium and long term, the reformist forces from PNL and USR must collaborate because that is the only way we will change Romania”, claimed Ghinea.
He also mentioned that USR would also like early elections. “Both USR and PNL Bolojan are growing in the polls because people have realized that Ilie Bolojan supported by USR represents a reformist force”, explained Cristian Ghinea.
