Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan said on Friday, in connection with the Constitutional Court's new postponement of a ruling on the magistrates' pension bill, that such delays are "unhealthy from every point of view for public trust", noting that it is very likely the European Commission will conclude that Romania has failed to meet its commitment and that the country will lose the approximately EUR 231 million currently withheld.
"First of all, it is very likely that the European Commission will consider that we have not fulfilled this commitment to correct these issues, which means we will lose the roughly EUR 231 million being withheld. Secondly, any such postponement simply generates additional social frustration, because any reasonable person, beyond discussing certain aspects, is deeply dissatisfied with what is happening," Bolojan told radio broadcaster Europa FM, commenting on the Constitutional Court's latest deferment of the ruling.
In his view, these delays are "unhealthy".
"They undermine public confidence not only in the Constitutional Court, but also in the basic sense of fairness Romanians expect from state authorities. And speaking of governing for people, imagine if these measures had been taken and people had seen that everyone is part of the effort, that things which are clearly out of line are being corrected.... You accept, for example, paying a higher property tax if you see that everyone pays fairly, but it feels very different when you are treated as the only one paying. This is what we must fix," Bolojan said.
Asked about claims from within the judiciary that the project would pass if magistrates' pensions were set at 80% of the net salary, he replied: "I haven't heard of such bargaining; no such offer has been put on the table."
"In my view, what we proposed is fair and reasonable. If the cap is set at a maximum of 70% of the last salary, the average pension in the judiciary would no longer be 5,000 euros, as it is today, but 3,500 euros - still far above the average pension of 600 euros, which is simply a matter of equity. This is not about bargaining with a person, whether prime minister or not; it is a matter of normality. (...) The law is currently under constitutional review, and I can ask rhetorically: is 50% constitutional, but 70% or 80% not? Is this what constitutional review comes down to? I don't think that is acceptable," the prime minister added.
On Wednesday, the Constitutional Court postponed again for February 18 the High Court of Cassation and Justice's referral regarding the Bolojan Government's new reform proposal on magistrates' pensions.
On February 6, Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan sent a letter to the Constitutional Court warning that delaying the ruling on magistrates's pensions could lead to the loss of EUR 230 million in NRRP funds.
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