It’s up to the Romanians to decide who their future president and prime minister will be, Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu said on Thursday in Brussels.

He was asked at a press conference if he gets to compete in the second round of the presidential election against Nicolae Ciuca, the incumbent national leader of the National Liberal Party (PNL), will he still consider a tandem that is if one of them wins the presidential election he will appoint the other prime minister.

„No, I saw what it meant. We have a president who wanted his government, without taking into account the will of the Romanians. The result has been a mish-mash for eight months, a more than disastrous right-wing government, which certain misdeeds we have to right now, including in the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR). If you want, I can detail all the past stupidities and all the unprofessional and secret approach when they designed this PNRR. So, no. I believe it will be the Romanians to decide who their future president and prime minister will be,” said Ciolacu.

He added that he did not have a discussion with the PNL leader on this subject, and that first, he has to win over the support vote of his PSD colleagues for the presidential candidacy at the party’s Congress convention on Saturday.

„I have said before, it is neither the first nor the last time I say it, you should know that, as a profile, I am a very simple man. The things you have already asked me about are far too sophisticated for me, even politically. I have no agreement with anyone. I will run if my colleagues give me their vote on Saturday, we will move on and then we will (…).”

AGERPRES