Parliament convenes to discuss censure motion

The Senate and the Chamber of Deputies have convened in a joint meeting to discuss and vote on a motion of censure tabled by the Social Democratic Party (PSD) after Government passed legislation on two-round mayoral elections by assuming responsibility. The meeting is led by Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies Marcel Ciolacu, who has announced that 350 parliamentarians are in attendance. Prime Minister Ludovic Orban and the members of his cabinet are also there. Under a decision of the Standing Bureaus the Government will have 60 minutes to talk, and the floor groups in the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate as follows: PSD - 34 minutes, the National Liberal Party (PNL) - 18 minutes, the Save Romania Union (USR) - 7 minutes, Pro Europa - 4 minutes , the Hungarian Democratic Union of Romania (UDMR) - 5 minutes, the People's Movement Party (PMP) - 2 minutes, the National Minorities Group - 3 minutes, non-affiliated lawamkers - 6 minutes. The censure motion "Orban / PNL government - privatisation of Romanian democracy" was signed by 208 PSD and UDMR lawmakers. According to the signatories, the Orban Government must be urgently dismissed both because its change in the electoral system shortly before the elections violates the European standards, and because the adoption of such changes was made unilaterally, without consultation and debate, by the power assuming responsibility. "The Constitutional Court has already told you, in its two rulings of January 29, 2020, that you are going the wrong way. That it is an abuse of power to come up with assuming responsibility for bills already under parliamentary procedure. That PNL seriously violates the Fundamental Law! Mr.Orban, you have opened a Pandora's box that may have tragic repercussions on all Romanians in the future. Democratic rules are not optional!," reads the motion. "You cannot be in power and change the electoral law out of short-term interest, a few months before the election, to create an advantage for yourself. It is an obvious abuse of power. An abuse that blatantly violates the Romanian Constitution and standards of good practice defined by the Venice Commission and shared by all the member states of the European Union. We do not believe any of you wants to be a party to such abuse. (...) So, dear colleagues, given PNL's desire to privatise democracy in Romania, please support this censure motion! Romania's oath is not eastbound. Do not let them take Romania on that road!" In order for the motion to prevail, 233 lawmakers have to vote for it. The vote on the motion of censure will be secret. According to the Constitution, the Government may assume responsibility before the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate, in joint sitting, upon a programme, a general policy statement, or a bill. The Government shall be dismissed if, after assuming responsibility, a motion of censure is tabled and adopted. If the Government has not been dismissed, the bill presented, amended, or completed, as the case may be, with the amendments accepted by the Government, shall be deemed as passed. AGERPRES (RO - author: Alina Novaceanu, editor: Claudia Stanescu; EN - author: Corneliu-Aurelian Colceriu, editor: Rodica State)