The Head of State will no longer be able to initiate a national referendum on the issuing of a decree. Under a bill proposed for public consultations, only Parliament can initiate any type of referendum, IPN reports.
The bill authors said that in order to adjust the Election Code to the constitutional provisions concerning the initiation of national referendums, it is proposed excluding Article 150 from the Code so that a legislative referendum could not be initiated by presidential decree. Under Article 88 lit. f) of the Constitution, the President can initiate only a consultative referendum.
Amendments are also proposed to Article 151 concerning the setting of the national referendum day. Thus, under the bill, paragraph (1), which provides that the national referendum date is set by Parliament by a decision if the referendum is initiated by citizens or by members of Parliament, or by the President of the Republic of Moldova by a decree if the referendum is initiated by this and is consultative in character, will be abrogated. Paragraph (2), which stipulates that the referendum date is set at least 60 days before the referendum becomes the common paragraph.
The Election Code is to be supplemented with Article 149. The new article says that a consultative referendum on problems of national interest, with the subsequent adoption of decisions to solve these, can be initiated by one third of MPs, the President and the Government. Thus, in case of problems of national interest, the plebiscite cannot be initiated by collecting signatures from citizens.
The Parliament decision, Government decision or the President’s decree on the initiation of a consultative referendum must contain the referendum date and the content of referendum questions, which should be formulated in a neutral manner, without ambiguities and should not suggest the answer.
