The Party of Socialists (PSRM), which holds 21 seats of MP of the 101, does not have the legal right to convoke Parliament, the head of the legislative body’s Legal Division Ion Creanga has told IPN.
Under the Parliament’s Regulations, the legislature has two ordinary sessions a year. The winter session starts in September and ends in December, while the spring session begins in February and lasts until the end of July at the latest. If Parliament is not in an ordinary session, it can come together for an extraordinary or special session, at the request of the President of Moldova, the Parliament Speaker or 1/3 of the MPs.
Ion Creanga noted that the eldest MP (in the current legislature Socialist Eduard Smirnov) does not have the powers of Speaker. He can only chair the constitution sitting of the legislature, which was held on December 29. “He cannot convoke Parliament as this can be done at the request of 1/3 of the lawmakers,” he stated.
The head of the Parliament’s Legal Division also said that the Socialists were issued with an answer to the letter signed by Eduard Smirnov, by which they were informed that they do not have the legal right to convene a Parliament sitting. Therefore, the Parliament’s secretariat will not prepare the assembly hall for the sitting.
The chairman of the PSRM Igor Dodon in a news conference on January 13 announced that the first sitting of the new Parliament this year was convened for January 15 and will be chaired by Socialist MP Eduard Smirnov, who already sent a relevant letter to the leaders of the parliamentary groups and the Parliament’s secretariat.
