Extensive reshuffle of the Romanian Government

Eight Social-Democratic ministers in Bucharest have lost their portfolios

Bogdan Matei, 20.11.2018, 13:29

Sworn in in January, the current cabinet
led by Social Democrat Viorica Dăncilă is already undergoing a major reshuffle
in November. The National Executive Committee of the Social Democratic Party,
the main party in the ruling coalition, on Monday decided to replace at least
eight ministers. Gabriel Leş makes a return as Defence Minister, replacing Mihai
Fifor who said he left office to coordinate Social Democratic Party
departments. The chairman of the Budget- Finances Committee of the Chamber of
Deputies, Marius Budăi, becomes minister of Labour and Social Justice, instead
of Lia Olguţa Vasilescu. Senator Niculae Bădălău takes over the Economy
portfolio from Dănuţ Andruşcă. The former minister for SMEs, Alexandru Petrescu,
is again joining the government team, replacing Petru Bogdan Cojocaru. Mathematician
Daniel Breaz takes over the Culture portfolio from actor George Ivaşcu, and
Senator Constantin-Bogdan Matei replaces Ioana Bran at the Youth and Sports
Ministry.

The reshuffle got stuck however on
Tuesday, at the Presidential Administration. Romania’s President, Klaus
Iohannis has announced he does not agree to Mrs Vasilescu’s taking over the
Transports portfolio, replacing Lucian Şova and to Ilan Laufer’s rejoining the
government team, this time as Development minister instead of party dissident Paul
Stănescu, who is at loggerheads with the party leader, Liviu Dragnea. A
consistent critic of the government, the president has deemed the reshuffle a
poor solution, pointing that a correct solution would be to replace the whole Government.
The head of state also said Romania needs high performing ministers, especially
in the run up to Romania’s taking over the rotating presidency of the EU
Council, as from January 1, 2019.

Actually, this is the main reason evoked
by Romanian PM Viorica Dăncilă to explain the reshuffle: We want to boost
activity in some domains. There is room for the better in some areas and this
is what we had in mind when coming up with this government reshuffle. We will
take over the presidency of the EU Council and we need people with a rich experience
and willing to get involved more and this is a second reason why this
government reshuffle has been made.

In exchange, the leader of the National
Liberal Party, in opposition, Ludovic Orban, says the Social Democratic Party has
failed to comply with the electoral pledges it made; he is denouncing the
preferential practices pursued to serve the Power’s cronies:

Ludovic Orban: The reshuffle does not do
any good to the functioning of the government, and it will do nothing else but
bring to the forefront other incompetents, other people who have nothing to do
with the domain in which they will carry out their activity, who are selected on
the single criteria of loyalty, of servitude to Dragnea.

The media underlines that, under the
Constitution, the president can refuse only once a nomination for the government
team and forecasts that the political war between the President and the Government
will be waged on a different battlefield, that of legal procedures,
notifications and appeals in court.