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PSD to table censure motion Thursday morning
A motion of censure against the Orban Government will be tabled on Thursday morning, said Wednesday Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies Marcel Ciolacu, acting national leader of the Social Democratic Party (PSD- opposition).
"Tomorrow morning we will table a motion of censure against the Orban Government," Ciolacu said at Parliament House on Wednesday. In his opinion, "the opposition rejoices every time the power gives it the right to file more motions." "And we don't want to get rid of that. We want to file the censure motion," Ciolacu added.
Asked if he would like the motion to prevail, the PSD leader said: "Definitely." "The math is not there, but it was not either when the Orban Government was voted in office," he said. Ciolacu said that in addition to the Hungarian Democratic Union of Romania (UDMR), no other group has announced support for the motion, but added that "there are more colleagues who would like it."
Marcel Ciolacu said on Wednesday evening, at Antena 3, that in order to pass the censorship motion announced by the PSD, five to six votes are needed. "There are some MPs with whom we are negotiating right now who want to join the PSD group. (...) I am optimistic about this censure motion's chances to pass," said Ciolacu.. The PSD chief said that the PMP, ALDE and minorities will not vote on the motion, because "they are afraid of anticipation".
He said that early elections are possible even if the motion prevails. "This possibility is constitutional, but it requires a certain procedure. Everything is open," said Ciolacu.
But, the change to the local election rules is the key to how Romanian politics would evolve in 2020, when both local polls and general elections are due to take place.
Both PM Ludovic Orban and Liberal-supported President Klaus Iohannis have spoken of early elections, which would help them politically as they appear to increase their parliamentary support. But for early elections to take place, a limited number of options are available, with the fall of the government in a censure motion among the very few possibilities.
Prime Minister Ludovic Orban said on Wednesday that he is "indifferently" waiting for the censure motion that the Social Democratic Party (PSD) is about to table, adding that he does not believe the approach stands any chance of success.
"I could say that I look forward to it [the motion censure] indifferently. When we have decided to assume responsibility for electing the mayors in two rounds, I was perfectly aware that the PSD will file a motion of censure. As far as we are concerned, we come up head high, we have put our mandate on the line and I think it shows something about the National Liberal Party (PNL) government coming up with a solution that is waited for by over 82% of the Romanian citizens, namely the democratic election of the mayors under a two-round election system," said Orban at Parliament House when asked about the PSD censure motion.
He added that in his reckoning he does not expect the motion to prevail. "I do not believe, honestly, after the evaluation I did today, that the censure motion stands a good chance of prevailing," Orban added.