An interim minister's warning: “We may be heading for a political deadlock and this Government will remain interim for months”
The mandate of an interim minister is limited, “with no possibility to promote public policies”, which is why “discussions for the formation of a new government should take place as soon as possible”, said the interim Minister of Health, Cseke Attila, in a press conference on Thursday.
The official explained that, at the moment, projects prepared in the Ministry of Health or on the interministerial approval circuit, which “are for the good of the health system”, are blocked and “we all lose, lose the citizens and lose the patients”. In this situation, there are projects related to the classification of hospitals, the establishment, for the first time in Romania, of a palliation program and a project to provide for the regulation of medical leaves, explained the interim minister.
This happens when the interim leadership of a ministry and the Government do not have powers to approve new public policies, Cseke Attila explained.
For this reason, Cseke Attila says that he would like his mandate as interim Minister of Health to be as short as possible: “I came here with responsibility and honor and I have a certain attachment to this ministry, I've been here before. I'm not giving up and I don't want to leave, that's not what it's about. But I, having experience and seeing the constitutional limitations of an interim Minister of Health, it is in the interest of the Romanian state to have a minister as soon as possible “full”.
The official believes, however, that “it will be very difficult to achieve this. If I look at the statements of political actors yesterday, I could say that today we are moving towards a political deadlock rather than a solution.”
“But it is the attribute and responsibility of every political party to find solutions to make this happen,” he added. “The later it happens, the more these measures that we told you were being prepared in the Ministry of Health, could be implemented – some were already in the interministerial approval procedure – and now they stop, the longer this interim period lasts, the more these solutions, which are for the good of the health system, are blocked, we all lose, lose citizens and lose patients.”
“It must be discussed, it must be debated until a solution is found. But it would be preferable for this debate not to last very long, not to last for weeks, maybe even months, and to establish a Government with a full mandate”, says the UDMR minister.
“Perhaps a candidate for prime minister can be found that can be accepted by both parties that today are in a state that seems irreconcilable, I mean PNL and PSD. Or maybe another solution must be found, but the important thing is that it is a solution that is democratic and pro-European.”
According to Cseke Attila, “from yesterday's statements, if we were to remain in yesterday's statements, we might be heading towards a political deadlock and this Government would remain interim for months”.
“Everyone said who they don't want to be with, and if you put them side by side, it doesn't really come out of a parliamentary majority. Political solutions must be found, they are not magic solutions. The political class must find solutions to this situation as quickly as possible”, warned the interim Minister of Health.
