From “I found out from TV”, “Conspiracy, betrayal”, to “We will discuss with Adrian Veștea”. How the leaders of the former coalition parties reacted to Nicușor Dan's decision

On Sunday morning, after Eugen Tomac withdrew and President Nicușor Dan nominated Adrian Veștea as the candidate for the position of prime minister, HotNews asked representatives of the parties of the former coalition if they would be willing to be part of a possible government led by the liberal Veștea. They all said they were surprised by the president's decision.

President Nicușor Dan's announcement surprised not only the public, but also some party leaders, especially those of the PNL.

PSD wants to be part of a government with PNL, without Bolojan. Daniel Zamfir; “We will discuss with Vestea”

“I learned from TV, like you,” claimed a leader of the PSD, who explained that now that the break from the PNL has occurred, the social democrats would be willing to return to government.

PSD leaders wanted from the beginning, since they withdrew from the government on April 20, the removal of Ilie Bolojan.

After the president's announcement, the leader of the party's senators, Daniel Zamfir, and deputy Mihai Fifor, reacted officially from the PSD.

Zamfir declared, on Digi 24, that he is going to have a discussion with the newly appointed prime minister, the liberal Adrian Veștea, emphasizing that the social democrats are open to a Government and a coalition with the PNL, but without Ilie Bolojan.

“Considering the economic disaster that Romania has reached with Ilie Bolojan as prime minister, I said that we agree with any variant of prime minister from the PNL to maintain the truly pro-European governing coalition,” said the senator.

“In this situation, PSD will have a discussion with Mr. Vestea. Sure, let's see. Mr. Vestea will propose PSD to enter the government. I don't know,” said the social democrat.

Asked if PSD is willing to go to government again with PNL and maybe even USR. Zamfir replied: “Why not?”.

“After the censure motion, we declared that we want to continue this form of government, but without Ilie Bolojan because Ilie Bolojan caused this economic disaster,” Zamfir said.

The PSD deputy Mihai Fifor said, after the appointment of the liberal Adrian Veștea as prime minister, that “any proposal that can contribute to the establishment of a viable governing formula, capable of generating a stable parliamentary majority, must be analyzed with responsibility and seriousness”.

He said that, considering that this nomination was made without prior consultation with our formation, they will convene the leadership forums of the party to analyze in detail this proposal and its political implications.

Bolojan and leaders close to him accuse “an obvious attempt to break the PNL”

At PNL, for many leaders today's announcement by the president was a surprise. “For me it was a surprise,” a PNL leader told HotNews.

After Nicușor Dan's announcement, PNL president Ilie Bolojan accused the head of state of “an obvious attempt to break the PNL”. According to Bolojan, neither he nor the PNL leadership was “previously informed” about this new nomination for prime minister, which comes from the PNL itself.

“A hostile act, an obvious attempt to break the PNL, an intention intuited since the overthrow of the government in the interest of the PSD”, the interim prime minister and PNL leader wrote on Facebook.

“The attempt to impose on a party a prime minister from its ranks, without even having a prior consultation and after all the decisions taken unanimously by the party forums, violates any principle of loyal political collaboration”, says Bolojan.

He added that a meeting of the PNL leadership is to be organized in order to make an official decision.

“Conspiracy. Treason. Interference”

Leaders close to Ilie Bolojan accuse a betrayal.

The first vice-president of the PNL, Ciprian Cicu, went public through a message posted on Facebook in which he accused that the appointment by the president Nicușor Dan of his party colleague, Adrian Veștea, for the position of prime minister is “an act of aggression against a democratic party”.

Ciucu said that members of the party's leadership learned about Veștea's nomination only after it had already been decided.

“Conspiracy. Treason. Interference. The statutory leadership of the National Liberal Party was not consulted, not even asked about this nomination. We all found out post-factum, when the phones started ringing,” Ciucu wrote.

“Nicusor Dan openly and unequivocally assumed the confrontation with the National Liberal Party”

Another liberal, deputy Robert Sighiartău, accuses that the president gave up the position of mediator and chose to become a political actor in a confrontation aimed at fragmenting the PNL, considering that Bolojan's removal is part of a strategy assumed together with the PSD.

“This morning, at the hour when millions of Romanians were preparing to go to church, President Nicusor Dan openly and unequivocally assumed his confrontation with the National Liberal Party. By appointing a first vice-president of the PNL for the position of prime minister, without consulting the party and without the existence of a mandate from it, the president chose to intervene directly in the internal life of the National Liberal Party”, wrote deputy Robert They were smoking on Facebook.

He said that, for many, “this gesture confirms what until now was only a suspicion, that the removal of Ilie Bolojan was not the result of simple political differences, but part of a strategy assumed together with the PSD”.

“The censure motion that removed the Bolojan government opened a period of political and economic instability. The costs were borne by the citizens, the business environment and all those who want predictability and real reforms. Today, the president gave up the position of mediator and chose to become a political actor in a confrontation that seeks to fragment the National Liberal Party”, says Robert Sighiartău.

And Alexandru Muraru, deputy and president of PNL Iași, denounces the nomination of Adrian Veștea to the position of prime minister as an attempt to dynamite the party from within.

However, there is also a first PNL leader who publicly announces his support for Adrian Veștea.

Contacted by HotNews, Vice President Alexandru Popa believes that Adrian Veștea is “a good option” for prime minister. He also said that he does not think that Vestea should be expelled from the party because he accepted the proposal of the president, who did not consult with the party leaders.

“I don't think it's a betrayal, why? Maybe Mr. Veștea will create a very efficient government, to carry forward the reforms. I'll go and get my vote in the organization and we'll see where it ends,” Alexandru Popa said.

The local publication BizBrașov wrote, at the end of April, that the “Thuma group” from the PNL is preparing Adrian Veștea “to become the future prime minister of Romania in a future PSD – PNL – UDMR government”.

“I don't think anyone from USR anticipated this designation”

At USR, the same surprise: “I don't think anyone from USR anticipated this designation,” a member of the party's leadership told HotNews.

Another representative of the USR explained that “only now do we have to think”, after the vote in the USR on Thursday against supporting the Government proposed by Tomac was overwhelming.

A public position in the USR was held by deputy Alexandru Dimitriu, former secretary of state in the Ministry of Justice.

He says that President Nicușor Dan should have consulted the parliamentary political parties before proposing a new candidate for the position of prime minister.

“The constitution is very clear: the appointment of a candidate for the position of prime minister must be preceded by the consultation of the parliamentary parties. The consultations held previously had a precise object and produced a concrete result: the appointment of Eugen Tomac for the position of prime minister. The moment he submitted his mandate, the constitutional procedure generated by those consultations ended,” the USR deputy wrote on Facebook.