PNL's Ludovic Orban: PSD rally - much ado about nothing

National Liberal Party (PNL) leader Ludovic Orban told Sunday evening a press conference in Targu Mures that the rally organised by the Social Democratic Party (PSD) in Bucharest a day ago was "much ado about nothing."

"Much ado about nothing. The day of June 9 will go down in history as the day Simona Halep won the Roland Garros. The rest of the events came second. It seemed to me I was in a parallel world. I saw was often mentioned, something that honestly left me a little baffled. I believe they spent a lot of time in the sun and that tampered with the clarity of the judgment of those who held speeches. (...) Firstly, it is the prerogative of totalitarian regimes for parties at rule to organise rallies. In no democracy in this world can I recall a governing party organising protests against abuse. The abuse can only be performed by someone in power. (..) As such, most abuse the Romanian citizens have been subjected to are carried out by those who organised last night's rally. They are slightly masochistic, they protested against the abuse they themselves perpetrated," Orban maintained.

He affirmed that "unimaginable nonsense" was said at the PSD rally, as the PSD members and leaders signed the protocols with the Romanian Intelligence Service (SRI), had inappropriate relations with people from the intelligence services.

"All the phantasmagoria, in stark contrast with reality, that were said by some desperate individuals, with their eyes popping out of their sockets, who own the power, show that they have lost the sense of reason, that they live in a parallel reality, that they have forgotten about their basic mission - to govern Romania and bring prosperity to citizens whereas instead they are fighting an invisible enemy which as a matter of fact does not exist and they are fighting against themselves," Orban said.

He considers that by organising this rally, PSD wanted to confiscate symbols - Victoria Square where corruption is protested against, Romania's flag, the slogan #Resist! and was intended at the same time to put pressure on Justice.

"They wanted to put their stamp that Victoria Square belongs to them and it is not the first attempt. (...) Secondly, to put Romania's flag on a Government building at a political manifestation of a political party seems a blatant violation of the law and any common sense norm. The Romanian flag belongs to the entire nation, it does not belong to a political party. But, beside that, to display "#Resist!" which is practically a slogan, a message-symbol of the powerless people, of the common citizens, of the citizens who have willingly stood up to fight against the abuse committed by a power that is anti-Justice, to get to a point where to confiscate such a symbol shows boundless villainy. And also an attitude and contempt towards these free citizens, worthy of a communist party," Ludovic Orban stated.

He further maintained the rally was "certainly" conceived to put pressure on the justices who were due to make the decision on 8 June in "DGASPC Teleorman" case in which Dragnea is on trial.

"This rally is organised after the CCR [Constitutional Court of Romania, ed.n.]'s decision and is intended to intimidate the President. As a matter of fact, well informed sources are saying that Dragnea was prepared to announce the suspension of the president in his speech, in case the President does not remove from office Kovesi [National Anticorruption Directorate, DNA, head, ed.n.]. He no longer did this, but this is what the PSD people have in mind," the PNL leader affirmed.

According to him, the rally also had the role "to intimidate any parliamentarian who is no longer on Dragnea's side" and wants to vote a censure motion.

"It was not by mistake that my name was mentioned alongside the name of President Iohannis rather frequently, in not very flattering contexts and not exactly in line with reality. In my opinion, they failed with this rally," the Liberal leader said.