National leader of the National Liberal Party (PNL) Nicolae Ciuca said on Wednesday that the ruling coalition meeting will discuss issues related to the date of the presidential election, adding that some people argue that holding the presidential election in September would not give time for debates and will seem „something that is rushed, without taking into account the relevance of the presidential office.”

Ciuca said that the issue of a joint candidate for the presidential election „went out of the range of interest” of the two parties – PNL and the Social Democratic Party (PSD).

„We will discuss, of course, the date of the election. I think the problem of the joint candidate is out of the range of interest of both, without any limitation. We also very much want to discuss as seriously as possible this aspect of the election date, taking into account the fact that there are many messages from the NGOs and the civil society, from citizens, that September practically means to start campaigning during the holidays, there is no time for debates and, as such, it appears as something that is wanted to be rushed, without taking into account the relevance of the presidential office,” Ciuca said at the PNL headquarters.

Asked if the PSD’s insistence on scheduling the presidential elections in September is related to the timing of the recalculation and increase of pensions, the PNL leader said: „I very much want someone to stop thinking that they can fool people so easily.”

Regarding the scenario of a joint presidential candidate still being negotiated in the coalition, with PSD receiving in exchange for supporting Nicolae Ciuca’s presidential bid, the position of prime minister, European commissioner on behalf of Romania and leadership of one of the chambers of Parliament, the PNL leader said: „It is difficult to say that.”

„We are going tonight to a coalition meeting. We are willing to have a dialogue as honest and open as possible, as such any formula can be discussed, any formula if it is in the interest of developing a manifesto and a campaigning plan as coherent as possible.”

AGERPRES