Press release
on the organization of the debate “Do the actual and potential participants in the new coalition talks behave in a manner that is appropriate to the current situation in Moldova?: Extra-parliamentary views”, the 45th installment of the “Developing Political Culture by Public Debates” Series
Public debates series held by the news agency IPN in its conference room with the support of the German Foundation “Hanns Seidel”
The 45th installment involved: Anatolie Prohnitski, chairman of the Green Ecologist Party; Sergiu Mocanu, head of the People’s Movement “Antimafie”; Mihai Godea, head of the Democratic Action Party; Marin Livadaru, chairman of the Progressive Society Party; Vasile Costiuc, head of the Democracy at Home Party; Igor Botan, executive director of the Association for Participatory Democracy ADEPT, and the project's standing expert.
This time we discussed again the negotiations held to form a new government coalition that would vote in the new government, but from another angle, as important as last week, when we discussed NGOs’ views on the same process and not only. The necessity of debating this theme from different angles derives from the very specific period through which we now go, which is a period of profound crisis at different levels, generated or deepened, especially by the political crisis.
Thus, the political crisis is to be solved by political methods by the political players and parties that have been in power until now or by other parties, including those represented by the participants in the debate. This is because politics is a competition, while the competitions are won by the best ones, who are best prepared. If we stick to this analogy, the current situation can be compared with a very important football match that the national football team loses at a wide score, while the coach – Moldovan society – has to swiftly and exactly decide so as to remedy the situation: whether to keep the same players on the field, but stimulate them to mobilize and change their tactic, if there is hope that something like his is possible, to bring new forces from the reserve, or to accept defeat, which can be huge or even destructive.
So, the extraparliamentary parties seem to be ‘in the reserve’ from where they follow and analyze the game of their colleagues from the common team called the ‘Moldova political class’ that is on the field. The questions put in the debates were principally the following: Have the parliamentary parties chances, the necessary capacity and will to remedy the situation? What would the extraparliamentary parties do better in their place, if the ‘coach –society’ sends them out of the field?
Marin Livadaru, chairman of the Progressive Society Party, said the current government is in fact the same government as 20 years ago. The ruling politicians and parties discredited themselves as they in 2009 promised they will penalize the Voronin clan for the committed irregularities, but formed a tacit alliance with Voronin. “The old system is like a factory for forming the same type of politicians. If we try to keep the current system, we will further produce the same kind of politicians. If we do not change the system, we will commit the same mistakes. We must demand transparency. A new government is now being negotiated, but we forget that lustration is needed and that there should be transparency as regards each proposed candidate,” he stated.
Sergiu Mocanu, who heads the People’s Movement “Antimafie”, said the type of behavior adopted by the government perfectly fits Moldovan society. “We have anemic civil society. This cannot react to the situation in the country and to the behavior of the politicians. We have extraparliamentary parties that do not fit the context owing to the insufficient resources they possess. We have very rich parties in power. I think the population’s patience is so great that the rulers afford to do what they want now. They see no problem in behaving like this as they will anyway not be penalized because there is no on who can penalize them,” he said.
Mihai Godea, head of the Democratic Action Party, said thing stand as they stand because society is patient and because the people showed that they can endure any illegality committed by those who are in power. “We are witnesses to grotesque, miserable settling of accounts at the upper level, which consists of blackmail, threats and abuse. The people probably behave correctly as they think that they do not belong to this settling of accounts. They are indifferent because they know that a pro-European or technocratic coalition government will be ultimately invented, but this will not serve the state interests as they say one thing, but do another thing,” said Godea.
Anatolie Prohnitschi, chairman of the Green Ecologist Party, said Moldova is a state that does not have politicians because those who call themselves like this behave like ‘scalpers’ and didn’t yet reach the status of state official. The negotiations cannot have another ending than the planned one. “We had been witnesses to such negotiations. We have not a political class, but a genetically modified government that knows only how to lie to the people. The oligarch Plahotniuc (Vlad Plahotniuc, ex-first deputy chairman of the Democratic Party, e.n.) pushes us towards his own scenario – an alliance with the Communists and the replacement of the foreign development course,” he stated.
Vasile Costiuc, who heads the Democracy at Home Party, said that in a society where everything is economically and politically monopolized, success and development are impossible. “Before 2009, there was direct subordination to one political clan, but two clans came to power afterwards. In 2009, we said that everything is sad and serious and put hope in our politicians. In six years, after harsh struggles between them, one clan is now again in power and this clan controls everything. I think the government is appropriate because our society is fully inappropriate. Society should have opposed such behavior and should have removed the rulers, not smile at them. It’s said because the politicians reproduce and the new generations of politicians are similar to them. I’m afraid that we will have the same political class during the next five-ten years,” stated the party’s leader.
Igor Botan, executive director of the Association for Participatory Democracy (ADEPT), who is the permanent expert of the IPN project, said that there are five groups in Parliament, but only one, the Socialist group, behaves appropriately. These initiated the non-confidence motion so as to dismiss the Government and cause early parliamentary elections. The Party of Communists behaves inappropriately as they initiated the no-confidence motion, but do not want early elections. The Liberal Party has also behaved inappropriately because they said that they do not care if the Government is dismissed, but the next day invited those who were dismissed to negotiations. The Liberal Democratic Party’s behavior can be considered neither appropriate nor inappropriate because this party was made a scapegoat. “I’m inclined to believe that their behavior is appropriate as the Lib-Dems took a break to recover after they were humiliated. If they came yet to negotiations with a list of proposals that would contain the de-politicization of the law enforcement bodies and of the media sector and would try to convince the possible partners that they really want these changes, we could say that such behavior is typical of a political party,” stated Igor Botan.
The Agency published 7 news stories on the debate (see the English version of www.ipn.md): on 17.11.15, „IPN debate: How appropriate behavior of Moldovan political class is in current situation?” - http://www.ipn.md/en/integrare-europeana/73017; „Marin Livadaru: Current government commits crime against people when it discusses non-transparently” - http://www.ipn.md/en/politica/73020; „Sergiu Mocanu: I’m sure that Moldova will witness a revolution” - http://www.ipn.md/en/politica/73023; on 18.11.15, “Mihai Godea: Alliance agreement should contain only one point – implementation of accord with EU” - http://www.ipn.md/en/politica/73025; „Anatolie Prohnitski: Plahotniuc pushes us towards alliance with Communists and change of course” - http://www.ipn.md/en/politica/73031; “Vasile Costiuc: People must stage uprising to oppose such behavior by politicians” - http://www.ipn.md/en/politica/73033; “Igor Botan: Extraparliamentary parties can change situation in Moldova” - http://www.ipn.md/en/special/73035.
Valeriu Vasilica, director of IPN