Six Romanian Ministers Resign from PSD, Triggering Government Crisis

BUCHAREST, April 23. /TASS/. Six Romanian ministers and Deputy Prime Minister Marian Neacsu from the Social Democratic Party (PSD) have submitted their resignations, the party's press service said. They include the ministers of agriculture, energy, labor, justice, health and transport, as well as the deputy prime minister, who is the secretary general of the government. "From this moment, the prime minister no longer has the support of a parliamentary majority, which means he no longer has the democratic legitimacy to exercise the leadership of the Government of Romania," the PSD said in a statement. "According to the Constitution, no group and no person can exercise national sovereignty in their own name, contrary to the will of the parliamentary majority resulting from free and democratic elections," the party emphasized. As reported by several Romanian media outlets, the Social Democratic Party plans to appeal to the Constitutional Court to review the legitimacy of the cabinet after the resignation of its ministers. The party believes parliament should now raise the issue of confidence to the minority government, which has lost the support of the parliamentary majority. Once the resignations are officially registered with the prime minister's office, they, along with proposals for acting replacements, will be sent to the presidential administration for the preparation of decrees on their dismissal and the appointment of interim officials. Romania was thrust into political crisis after the PSD decided on Monday to withdraw political support for the prime minister and pull its ministers from the cabinet, citing disagreement with a number of austerity measures adopted by the government and the lack of real dialogue among partners in the ruling coalition. Until now, Romania was governed by a ruling coalition made up of the center-left Social Democratic Party, the center-right National Liberal Party, the Save Romania Union, and the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania. The cabinet has now shifted significantly to the right. In an effort to resolve the political crisis, President Nicusor Dan is holding consultations with party leaders in hopes of persuading them to reach a compromise and preserve the coalition.