Citu, Orban - Jewish New Year speeches; Cîtu: 10 days of repentance follow for you

Bucharest, Sept 6 /Agerpres/ - Prime Minister Florin Citu and the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, Ludovic Orban, gave speeches on Monday during the Jewish New Year celebration ceremony, in which the head of the Government spoke about the period of repentance, "practice that can be helpful at any time and to anyone", and Orban said that at present there is "a crisis of values". Prime Minister Citu reminded that "Israel has been and is an example in terms of vaccination." "The authorities there have managed to carry out the fastest anti-COVID vaccination campaign, and now they are among the first countries to offer the third dose of vaccine to the population. The Romanian state is truly the friend of the Jewish people and of Israel," Citu added. At the same time, he referred to the introspective dimension of the holiday and the importance of the family. "I know that for you there will be a period of 10 days of repentance. It is a practice that can be helpful anytime and to anyone. Like any holiday, it is a time to reunite the family and to be close to your loved ones and please believe me that it is very important for us to be with our family as much as we can, so whether you like it or not, I will give you a piece of advice: spend time with your loved ones and make their presence a celebration for you and your presence a celebration for them", pointed out the Chief Executive. The Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, Ludovic Orban, spoke in his speech about "the terrible years we are living". "I confess my deep emotion at this call to introspection and moral regeneration, and I feel that Romanian society, like all of humanity, must find the resources to respond properly. The terrible years we live in, these years in which we see old and new forms of intolerance, hatred, violence, we must mobilize and unite. (...) I am worried and I know that you share my concern, all these signs of a moral decomposition that threatens us in many directions," he said. He also referred to the history of Romania. "What is even sadder is the fact that for a long time in the modern history of Romania the political elites have been late in recognizing the rights of the Jewish communities and I express my most sincere regret for this error," Orban said. The ceremony on the occasion of Rosh Hashanah, the celebration of the Jewish New Year, is organized at the Coral Temple in Bucharest by the Federation of Jewish Communities in Romania. AGERPRES (RO - author: Oana Ghita, editor: Mihai Simionescu; EN - author: Bogdan Gabaroi)