Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu demanded the resignation of the president of the Commission for SRI control, Ioan Chirteș, after he declared that there is clear evidence that the leader of the AUR, George Simion, met with agents of the Russian services.
Ciolacu asked Ioan Chirteș to resign PHOTO Archive
“I made an official address to the prime ministers of Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova. They answered me through the intelligence systems. What I can tell you with certainty, the two briefings did not refer to the fact that Mr. Simion is a Russian spy. My opinion that what is happening favors Mr. Simion to go to the 2nd round. From the information I have, this accusation is not confirmed and will bring an advantage to Mr. Simion. (…) We will ask the SRI to give the details. One more thing happened. The head of the SRI says that he is a Russian spy. He is the president of the control commission, de not to abuse. He, thinking that he is intelligent, has attracted the SRI in an electoral campaign. He should give himself resignation. It is beyond his capacity, especially since he brought a suspicion that a secret service has information that he would use as blackmail in an election campaign”said Marcel Ciolacu.
The reaction comes after the president of the commission for the control of the SRI, Ioan Chirteş, said on Tuesday, about the ban on the entry of George Simion, to Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova, that there are accusations and clear evidence that the AUR leader had meetings with GRU officers and tried to divert peaceful demonstrations, electoral marches.
“It is a different thing, there are accusations and clear evidence, in which one of the candidates, George Simion, met, had meetings with GRU officers and even tried to hijack peaceful demonstrations, electoral support marches. (..) We still don’t know if George Simion tried to hijack”, said the president of the commission for SRI control.
For his part, George Simion declared that he will withdraw from the race for Cotroceni if images of him and GRU officers are published.
Also, one of the reporters brought up the fact that the president of the PNL, Nicolae Ciucă, sent on his personal page the fact that the PSD endangers Romania’s democracy and economic stability. According to the liberal, the social democrats did everything they could to increase George Simion electorally, using the CCR to make him an electoral corridor.
“Mr. Ciucă will not win the elections with any of these lies; he won’t even make the second round. I understand, when you are helpless, you become desperate and nervous, and not only you, but the whole team that runs your election campaign. But I did not expect that a former head of the army, former prime minister, current president of the Senate, the second man in the Romanian state would have such requests” answered Ciolacu.
The Prime Minister also spoke about the discussed plan of Hrebenciuc, which would bring an advantage to the AUR leader.
“I think that the escalation of that plan H – Hrebenciuc or as you would call it – also brings an advantage to Mr. Simion, because if I had wanted together with my colleagues, even though my face would have cracked with shame I ask my colleagues something like that, I should have spoken, I’ll give you an example, with an organization president; from Buzău, with Mr. Romașcanu, to be more explicit”he said.
Last but not least, he says about the information that appeared in the public space that he refrained from commenting on it, because it only benefits Simion.
“It was a political manipulation during an election campaign, publicized and transmitted, that’s why I refrained each time from commenting more than necessary, which directly helps him, through the media and through the attacks from the National Party Liberal, who do you believe? Mr. Simion. Same with the Russian spy charge.
I told you, my opinion as a politician, as a person who has been campaigning for 30 years since the Revolution in different political positions, that it was a manipulation that he continues to propagate, because sometimes, in life you have to to admit when you are stupid and stop. But by not acknowledging it, you make the same argument and actually favor Mr. Simion“, concluded the prime minister.
