The Metropolitan Bishop of Chisinau and all Moldova Vladimir, by the speech he gave in Parliament on the occasion of the Easter holidays on April 9, only wasted the MPs’ time, director of the Institute of Public Policy Arcadie Barbarosie said in the talk show “Pahomi” on Realitatea TV channel, IPN reports.

According to Barbarosie, the Metropolitan Bishop’s speech in Parliament wasn’t a political one or of importance for society. “I don’t understand why the Metropolitan Bishop delivered that speech from the Parliament’s rostrum at a time when the Constitution provides that the hurch is separated from the state. The head of the Moldovan Orthodox Church wasted the lawmakers’ time. In the period the MPs could have done more useful things, like discussing the draft state budget law. Another question is why priority is given only to one denomination, the Orthodox one, as the law stipulates that all of the denominations are equal,” he said.

Arcadie Barbarosie also said that in Moldova they promote the Orthodox branch of the Christian Church in state institutions. “Symbols of the Orthodox denomination can be seen in different state institutions and schools. I think this is inadmissible. Isn’t this discrimination against the representatives of other denominations? It’s not normal for religious symbols to exist in state institutions and schools,” he stated.

He noted that the politicians in Moldova use the church to achieve particular goals. “In a society as ours, the church was and continues to be used by the political elites to achieve their aims. For its part, the church uses this situation in its own interests,” said Barbarosie.