President Iohannis at MJ: Justice laws have been massacred by former toxic majority of PSD in Parliament

President Klaus Iohannis told new Justice Minister Catalin Predoiu that he has a difficult task as Minister of Justice, for the justice laws "have been massacred by the former toxic majority of the PSD [Social Democratic Party] in Parliament" and the discussions on these laws should be resumed with the experts in the system, the European bodies and "good faith politicians."

"I wish very much that Romania and the Romanians have a fair justice system, an efficient anti-corruption fight, and that you, Mr. Minister, and I also want to ask the Prime Minister to support you in this demarches, you have a difficult task ahead of you. We have the justice laws that have been massacred by the former toxic majority of PSD in Parliament and it's good that this majority changed. These laws are active, but this doesn't mean that they are perfect. We should resume the discussion, it should be resumed together with the experts in the system, with the bodies that are our partners - GRECO, the European Commission, together with the good faith politicians, and where we find that the modifications were correct, we should leave them like that, but we must correct the wrong ones," said Iohannis, at the ceremony where new Minister of Justice Catalin Predoiu took over the office.

The President also said that Predoiu must come with "a vision" in what concerns the Criminal Codes, to be harmonized with the decisions of the Constitutional Court.

"Also, Mr. Minister, you must come with a vision in what concerns the Criminal Codes, because it's clear that we need the Codes to be harmonized with certain decisions of the Constitutional Court. It's good that the assault of PSD on the Codes is over, for it would have been a national disaster if this assault continued. It's a tough job, but I am certain that with your expertise, with your very clear and diplomatic approach, you can come up with an approach that we'll make all of us say: Ok, now the laws are right, the Codes are right and the judges and prosecutors will only have to apply them in good faith. Mr. Minister, a special and complicated part is the management of the Public Ministry, because most people at the Public Ministry or most positions are extremely important, very visible, and the prosecutors who hold this offices now are only interims. So, again, very calmly, very diplomatically, you need to look into all these matters and I am certain that you will find the best solutions," said the head of the state.