Mihai Ghimpu and Marian Lupu say article 78 can be modified by referendum

Acting President Mihai Ghimpu, the leader of the Liberal Party (PL), and Marian Lupu, the chairman of the Democratic Party (PDM), reverted to the idea of modifying article 78 of the Constitution by referendum. Marian Lupu said this idea was encouraged by the representatives of the Venice Commission, who recently had meetings with the government coalition and the Communist Opposition in Chisinau, Info-Prim Neo reports. Marian Lupu said it does not matter how article 78, which describes the procedure for electing the head of state, is modified – in Parliament or by referendum. “Both of the variants are acceptable. The important thing is to overcome the crisis and avoid political stalemates in the future,” Marian Lupu said. According to the Democrat leader, the Council of Europe proposed electing the head of state by 61 votes by two rounds in Parliament. If the two attempts fail, the President should be elected directly by the people. “The Communists did not accept this proposal. If they agree with it, I will be in favor of dialogue in the Parliament so as not to transform the crisis into a chronic one and identify solutions as soon as possible,” Marian Lupu said. “We have a letter from the Constitutional Court, which says that any article from the Constitution can be modified in Parliament or by referendum, except matters concerning the neutrality, integrity and sovereignty of the country.” The members of the Alliance for European Integration and the representatives of the Venice Commission discussed the possibility of the coalition and the Opposition signing a political agreement, whereby the parties would pledge to vote in favor of amending article 78 in the new Parliament, in the post-electoral period. According to Lupu, this is a possibility, but it does not provide guarantees as the political players might not keep their word. “The referendum can allow modifying article 78 before the parliamentary elections,” he said. Mihai Ghimpu stated that a condition imposed by the PCRM was to cancel the presidential decree of December 14, 2009, whereby he ordered setting up the commission for studying the consequences of the totalitarian Communist regime in Moldova. “Why do they impose such a condition? The constitution of the commission has nothing to do with the modification of the Constitution. They probably feel guilty,” Mihai Ghimpu said. Asked if the Parliament will be dissolved within three months, as the Communists expect, Mihai Ghimpu said the legislative body will be dissolved within a reasonable time frame. On Friday, May 21, the PCRM made public a statement, saying it is ready to enter into a political agreement with the Alliance, but accused it of unwillingness to overcome the political crisis and of misinforming the experts of the Council of Europe.