Constitutional Court approves AEI's bill to amend Constitution by referendum

The Constitutional Court on July 6 approved the bill to amend article 78 of the Constitution by referendum, submitted by the Alliance for European Integration (AEI), so that it can be put to the vote in Parliament, Info-Prim Neo reports. Before the deliberations, Democrat lawmaker Aurel Baiesu said an incorrect method for electing the head of state was instituted in 2000 as a result of unjustified interventions. “The last eight years showed this modality was unsuccessful as it led to political, economic and social crises, frequent dissolutions of Parliament. This bill is designed to prevent such crises,” the MP said. Aurel Baiesu said the direct election of the head of state will allow the people to more precisely express their political preferences. Polls show 78% of the population is in favor of directly electing the President, he said, adding this method is one of the most spread in the world. Asked by the president of the Constitutional Court Dumitru Pulbere if the conflicts that in 2000 led to the modification of the procedure for electing the head of state can be avoided, Aurel Baiesu said a number of constitutional provisions do not allow this to happen. “Normally, such modifications (concerning the method of electing the head of state – e.n.) should be approved by referendum. As to the conflicts, there are constitutional provisions that allow creating remediation mechanisms. Furthermore, in the future we plan to introduce other amendments regarding cooperation mechanisms,” the lawmaker said. Liberal-Democrat MP Vitalie Nagachevski said nobody can guarantee that there will be no disagreements. “To my mind, a possible conflict between the President and the legislative body is less serious than a political crisis. But it is the Constitutional Court that will pronounce on the conflicts,” the jurist said. Earlier, the leaders of the AEI announced the constitutional referendum will most probably take place on September 5. A final decision may be taken at the July 7 sitting of the Parliament. In the referendum, the people will answer whether they want the President of Moldova to be elected by direct vote.