The ruling coalition finally reached an agreement on the adoption of the budget, amid tensions in recent days. Threatened with dismissal, Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan is consolidating, while PSD emerges weakened from this whole confrontation, explains political analyst Cristian Hrițuc, former presidential adviser, in an analysis for “Adevărul”.
What the PSD wanted to be the beginning of the plan to disembark Ilie Bolojan from the Victoria Palace eventually turned into a fiasco for the social democrats after they failed to impose their amendments on the “social package”. The reason? AUR MPs changed their mind at the last minute and withdrew their support.
In the end, PSD found understanding also among the governing coalition. Following a meeting between the leaders of the PSD, PNL, USR and UDMR, the coalition decided to support the PSD amendment, the funding being provided from the postponement of the payment of some rights for magistrates, won by court decisions.
“From a political point of view, the big loser is the PSD. Regardless of what they claim, that they passed that social package or that they found those sums, from a political point of view they are losers. They lost ground to the AUR, which left them offside and got recognition in front of a joint PSD-AUR electorate. The AUR got, so to speak, an ascendancy over the PSD. They were played even by the PSD and they showed that they can play even more populist, coming up with messages much more to the liking of the common public. So the PSD lost to the AUR, who left them offside and showed that they know how to play politically in the power relations inside the Parliament.” explained Cristian Hrițuc.
The real objective: the removal of Bolojan
According to the former presidential adviser, the PSD aimed to capitalize on a parliamentary victory to create the conditions for a change of prime minister. A clear victory in Parliament would have generated the necessary pressure to force the hand of the president and the coalition partners. The scenario did not materialize.
“PSD tried, in fact, a month ago, to attack the prime minister, to change Bolojan. A win for the PSD in yesterday’s form would have created a lot of pressure and given them an advantage in this move. From this moment, I risk saying that the move to remove Bolojan, which was announced to be done immediately after the budget, this whole move failed”says Hrițuc.
Bolojan comes out consolidated
In the analyst’s opinion, Ilie Bolojan emerges stronger after this trial, given that the budget will be adopted on the premises established by the Government.
“He did not agree to change the philosophy of the budget, even if he offered an exit door to the PSD today and took out of the money for magistrates, from the rights won, rescheduling them. It is an acceptable compromise, because he did not change the philosophy of the budget and kept on the line of controlling the deficit, which was the great interest. Everyone in the political environment knows that it is a big failure for the PSD and that it was caught in the trap of the AUR, and this is a strengthening element for Bolojan inside the PNL. The PSD no longer has the support of the AUR or the UDMR in this process, which is, again, a point won for Bolojan, which also strengthens him inside the PNL, because the small opposition camp, which had been in a kind of agreement with the PSD, at this moment remains exposed.” explains Hrițuc.
He also claims that the statement made on Wednesday by President Nicușor Dan, in which the head of state emphasized that the four parties must govern together, practically closed any scenario of a breakup of the coalition.
“This shows very clearly that the president does not agree with a breakup of the coalition nor with the removal of the USR and, implicitly, with the removal of Bolojan. Because, again, we have to start from the cause, from the “original sin”, so to speak: PSD tried to remove Bolojan and USR. These were the objectives stated by the PSD leadership. Because Olguța Vasilescu is the leadership. Maybe Grindeanu did not say explicitly, but Olguța and Manda followed this message”, concluded Cristian Hrițuc.
