President Nicusor Dan has submitted to the Constitutional Court a notification of unconstitutionality regarding the law requiring that at least 40% of the sportspeople who compete in a team in official national competitions be Romanian, arguing that the normative act is discriminatory.

„I firmly support the objective of encouraging and developing Romanian sports, of supporting young sportspeople and of investing in their training. These goals are legitimate and necessary. However, they must be achieved in compliance with the Romanian Constitution and the law of the European Union, to which Romania is a part of,” the head of state wrote on Facebook on Tuesday.

He believes that the law passed by Parliament violates the principle of non-discrimination and the free movement of workers, enshrined in both the Constitution and the European treaties, by directly relating to the athletes’ citizenship.

In addition, the president says, the law affects the right to work, by limiting the access of European sportspeople to national competitions.

At the same time, in his opinion, the requirements of quality and clarity of the law are not respected, including by establishing sanctions for misdemeanors that go beyond the general framework provided for by the legislation in force, without an express derogation.

„The experience of other European states and UEFA regulations show that supporting locally trained sportspeople can be done efficiently without criteria based on citizenship, but through investments in academies, junior centers and training programs”, emphasizes the head of state. AGERPRES