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Iohannis: Possible relaxation of some measures as of May 15 does not mean going back to normal life
The relaxation of measures, after May 15, does not mean going back to the life before the pandemic, with the restrictions to be lifted gradually, President Klaus Iohannis declared on Tuesday at Cotroceni Presidential Palace. "The fact that we might relax certain measures as of May 15 does not mean that we go back to our normal life, which we had before the epidemic," he said. He added that "experts tell us that they do not even know when we will return to a normal life."
Iohannis detailed that after May 15, when the state of emergency ends, people will not be able to walk in the street in large groups, and leaving the place of residence can be done only with a "serious motivation". According to him, "the big festivals will probably not take place this year", and the sports competitions, "if they resume, there is a high probability that they will be without spectators". "The measures we will take to reduce the restrictions will be gradual," the head of state said.
According to him, next week a decision will be made in regards to the format that will follow the relaxation measures, namely if the state of emergency will be prolonged or another administrative alternative will be sought.
"Next week we will make a decision in what regards the format in which we continue - if we continue with the state of emergency or we find another administrative alternative. We can communicate if, for example, starting with May 15 we will be able to go to the dentist or not, but we can communicate it next week to be applied on May 15. The decision will be made next week. I gave examples of possible relaxations, do not understand wrongly," said Iohannis, in a press conference at the Cotroceni Palace.
Iohannis added that he wants local elections to be held this autumn and parliamentary elections to be organized in late November or early December, as initially scheduled, but that the ballots will have to be postponed if their safety cannot be guaranteed.
"Increasingly more experts tell us that we won't be able to get rid of the virus and that we will have to find a way to live with it. (...) It's still too early to say whether we will or not have elections in September, October or December, it all depends on how we manage the epidemic and on how the population reacts to this virus. What is really important, in my opinion, is that we hold the ballots when they don't pose a danger to the population. I will not agree to elections being held as long as the epidemic still lingers and there's a significant number of sick people. I'd like us to succeed in holding local elections this autumn, and parliamentary elections as planned, towards the end of November or the beginning of December, but if they cannot take place safely, they'll have to be postponed; under no circumstance will I allow elections to be held under the sign of the epidemic," the head of the state told a press conference at the Cotroceni Palace.