|
RRI newsletter subcription
(e-mail address):
|
 |
Archives:
|
|
| Joint Legislative and Local Elections - Public Debate Goes On |
| (2011-09-12) |
| Last updated: 2011-09-13 17:53 EET |
The main party in the ruling coalition, the Liberal-Democratic Party, is certain that local and legislative elections will be held jointly as of next year. The opposition has challenged this move but it lacks the political leverage to prevent it from happening.
The parties in the governing coalition, the Liberal-Democratic Party, the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania and the National Union for the Progress of Romania, seem to have reached consensus over holding joint local and legislative elections as of next year. Liberal-Democratic secretary general Ioan Oltean said that elections are to be held simultaneously in November. Irrespective of the opposition’s standpoint in this matter, setting a date for the elections is a responsibility resting with the Government alone.
The Liberal-Democrats have nonetheless acknowledged the fact that this move requires amendments to be brought to the local public administration legislation and to the local elections law. According to another scenario backed by the Liberal-Democrats, the solution would be a law that should include all the changes entailed by joint elections. The Romanian PM, Emil Boc, has expressed support for the idea on account of financial and economic benefits. He said that unnecessary loses would be avoided by calling off sterile debates and that the move would also boost coherence at EU level by fostering non-political topics linked to macro-economic stability.
Moreover, the Romanian official went on to say, the joint election campaign would save the Romanian state tens of millions of euros. The opposition Social-Liberal Union has agreed with the reduced cost of the elections, although they did not refrain from alluding to the electoral bribe the Liberal-Democrats would be willing to use in order to consolidate their political position. Therefore, the opposition firmly opposes holding joint local and legislative elections and said thye would submit a no-confidence vote, should the government head in that direction.
The Social-Liberals even threatened to challenge this decision at the Constitutional Court and employ different means of protest. The Social-Democratic leader, Victor Ponta, has warned that all documents signed by local mayors or heads of local or county councils risk being declared null and void, given that their mandates are due to expire next summer and should be extended until the autumn of 2012. Victor Ponta believes that, should this happen, he might build a court case challenging the validity of construction authorizations, of auctions or other decisions taken by local authorities.
Political pundits have made two observations in this dispute, both against the Government’s intentions. First of all, democracy has its costs and any money-related arguments are unfounded in the debate on the election reform. Secondly, it is most likely that election confusion would probably float up as a result of holding local and legislative elections on the same day. The self-assurance displayed by Liberal-Democratic secretary general Ioan Oltean is however indicative of the fact that the Liberal-Democrats have successfully persuade their junior coalition partners and that one way or the other, the election reform will materialize, just as it happened last year, when the Liberal-Democrats advanced similar draft laws that served the party’s interests.
|
|
| |
WMA |
|
64kbps : |
1
2
3
|
|
|
128kbps : |
1
2
3
|
| |
MP3 |
|
|
64kbps : |
1
2
3
|
|
|
128kbps : |
1
2
3
|
| |
AAC+ |
|
|
48kbps : |
1
2
3
|
|
|
64kbps : |
1
2
3
|
 Historical mascot of
RRI |
| |
© 1999 - 2011 Copyright Radio Romania International |
|
2025-04-03
Print
Listen again