UDMR President Kelemen Hunor stated on Tuesday evening that by the end of June we should have a political government, preferably composed of the parties that made up the former governing coalition.

In an interview with TVR Info, Kelemen Hunor indicated that he prefers a political government, noting that when the parties sought the citizens’ vote, they assumed the responsibility of entering the government.

‘The electoral process cannot be moved elsewhere. We need a political government. With whom? How? With what votes? I don’t know. That’s what needs to be discussed. If you find someone who can sit down at the table with the PNL, USR, UDMR, and PSD, we might eventually—perhaps on the second or third try—reach a solution. We don’t all have to participate in the government, but we can support a government transparently and openly. With ‘the following points’. But a political agreement is also needed, because it would be important for Mr. Tomac as well—if he has a majority—to have something signed; anyway, it’s a problem afterward whether it’s respected or not, but at least people should know, citizens should know, that there is a political agreement, there is an agenda that includes that law, that bill, the budget, the deficit. And then there is a committed, transparent, and responsible majority. Not everyone has to be in the government,” stated the UDMR leader.

He agreed that there could also be a minority government: “Yes, yes, but behind a minority government there must still be parliamentary support for those points that you can move forward with, let’s say, until next spring.”

Kelemen Hunor emphasized that “governing is a political act.”

‘Decisions are political; afterward, you implement them through civil servants, through the central administration, through local administration, but it is still a political act,’ he added.

According to the UDMR leader, the parties must find a solution and take on the responsibility of governing: ‘That is why they went before the citizens a year and a half ago and asked for their votes. Everyone said they wanted to be in government; no one said, ‘Vote for me so I can stay in the opposition.’ And so these parties, which were voted in by the citizens, must take on the responsibility of governing.”

In his view, a government without politicians cannot function, referring to the secretaries of state.

‘Anything is possible, but it’s not functional. It’s possible. Okay, but how will you verify, where will you get, let’s say, 70 secretaries of state? (…) The responsibility of governing is a political one. You can’t transfer it; that’s what we need to understand. It sounds good—let’s debate how a technocratic government works. But where do we place the responsibility? Because they have no political responsibility, they weren’t elected, they didn’t ask for the citizens’ vote. (…) When you want to govern, there has to be political responsibility somewhere. If it doesn’t exist, not even at the level of secretary of state, how will it work? Tell me, because I don’t see it. It’s a textbook political science issue,” explained Kelemen Hunor.

When asked about the chances of forming the Tomac government, he indicated that he did not want to speculate, but based on his discussions with colleagues, those chances had not improved. ‘Today, at least, based on statements, on what I’ve seen, on who I’ve spoken with in Parliament—my colleagues from the Liberals and from other political parties—it didn’t seem to me that the chances had improved today. But tomorrow is another day,” Kelemen Hunor added.

In the event that the proposed government is rejected by Parliament, the UDMR leader noted that consultations must resume, and the parties must be prepared with a proposal for a prime minister.

‘First of all, the parties must immediately request consultations with the president—or perhaps the president, before the parties, must, as soon as it becomes clear that there is no majority or the votes have been counted and there are not 233 “yes” votes—immediately call the parties for consultations, so we don’t waste any more time. And the parties must be prepared to go and have a proposal for prime minister. After that, of course, the president decides whether or not he has been convinced that one candidate or another has the ability to form a government. On the second attempt, it will likely be an easier task. (…) I am in favor of a political government. It doesn’t matter to me at this point whether it’s made up solely of the PSD—it could even be a single-party government—whether it’s made up solely of the PNL, whether it’s PSD-PNL-USR, PNL-PSD-USR-UDMR, as long as it is a government that is politically accountable for its actions,” he emphasized.

The UDMR president noted, in this context, that the PSD has the most seats in Parliament, ‘but they don’t have a majority.’

‘And that is why I believe everyone has a responsibility. (…) I want to believe that the parties will come up with a proposal. I want to believe that the parties will not shirk the political responsibility of proposing a prime minister to the president to form a government. I don’t believe that this means the parties have truly lost touch with what politics is all about. No, the parties must have the capacity to propose a prime minister. After that, of course, the president decides—constitutionally, he appoints the prime minister. But if no one proposes anything to the president, what is the president to do? (…) I don’t think we’ll get to that point, or I hope we won’t get to that point—having an interim government until September. It is the parties’ responsibility to nominate someone, to give the president something to ‘work with’… that is the parties’ responsibility. (…) Two weeks ago I said that by June 15 we should have a government. Now I’m saying that by the end of June we should have a political government. And I’d prefer the first option—for me, that’s the old coalition—a majority government, clear, transparent, with grievances set aside, put aside, and working to resolve everything that can be resolved during this extremely complicated period, not only in the country but also in the regional and international context,’ Kelemen Hunor added.

Source: AGERPRES