The political class is playing with matches next to the powder keg that can explode at any moment, and the current political decision-makers have abandoned open communication with the public and have gone into hiding to decide the next moves, claims CNS Cartel Alfa, in a press release sent to AGERPRES on Saturday.
“The political class is playing with matches next to the powder keg that can explode at any moment. The December 2024 decision of the international credit rating agency Fitch to lower Romania’s rating has amplified the political crisis. Among the Central and Eastern European states that are members of of the European Union, Romania borrows at the highest interest rates due to local instability. The economic problem is fueled by the two deficits: the budgetary (almost 8.6% of GDP according to the latest statements of the Minister of Finance) and the commercial one (the difference between exports and imports, which increased by 17.7% compared to 2023). The obsession of the political class and opinion makers is to identify the level of spending as too high, which would have caused the budget deficit, is supported despite the data showing the opposite: the Romanian state spends 40.3% of the GDP compared to the European average of 49% in the GDP, according to the latest Eurostat data. On television, statements such as “Romania has the largest number of budget workers”, but the reality shows the complete opposite: relative to the population, the number of employees from the public administration is the lowest in Europe,” the press release reads.
According to the cited source, the current political crisis is also amplified by the uncertainty regarding European industrial production.
“In Germany, the situation is alarming, leading to a decrease in confidence among industrialists, which produced negative effects even in Romania, where several industrial companies announced restructuring and staff reductions. The decrease in industrial production, correlated with the erosion of trust in institutions democratic and political polarization, amplifies the unprecedented crisis that Romania is facing in this situation. the current political decision-makers do not pay attention to the agenda and the needs of the citizens. The vote in the first round of the presidential elections, but also the disastrous result following the parliamentary elections, should have represented an alarm signal. Despite the promises of change, the Ciolacu II Government looks almost identical to the past, and the approach in the relationship with the citizen is the same: lack of transparency, austerity only for some and the absence of real consultations,” the trade union warns.
CNS Cartel Alfa representatives emphasize, at the same time, that “the parties, both those in the coalition and those in the opposition, did not make the minimal gesture to request the clarification of the constitutionality of the current President’s mandate”, and “in this way, they divert the public agenda and fuel speculative discussions , safe ammunition for extremist movements”.
“The impression that the lack of action in this situation leaves is that politicians are only occupied with preserving their own interests for the moment, while ignoring the most pressing topics for citizens. Political parties have abandoned open communication with the public and have gone into hiding to decides the next moves. The high deficit must be corrected by improving the collection, but the government refuses to undertake any measure other than the recipes that have proven ineffective for years, such as those in the train ordinance. Differentiated and discriminatory austerity measures: the “privileges” for construction, IT and agricultural personnel are eliminated, but the VAT exemption is applied to gambling; interest on bank deposits is taxed, but cryptocurrencies are exempt from tax,” the trade union points out.
They believe that instead of real consultation and firm and responsible commitments, “the decision-makers only produce public circus”.
“One day, the governors state that they will not increase the VAT, only to later come out with a contrary hypothesis. At the same time, the prime minister writes on his forearm that the VAT will not increase, and the members of the coalition of government say that this possibility exists. Until they decide on the direction of the joint communication, the International Monetary Fund has published the data regarding the economic situation of the world, and Romania’s situation is becoming more uncertain,” the quoted source mentions.
In this context, CNS Cartel Alfa requests the parliamentary political parties to assume the responsibility for which they were mandated by the citizens and to enter into a dialogue with the society and the social partners.