President Igor Dodon said he wants a referendum in order to annul the law by which the stolen US$1 billion was converted into state debt. In response, Prime Minister Pavel Filip posted on Facebook his arguments why such a referendum is impossible and, even if it’s possible, it would anyway be inopportune. The authors of the article on sic.md have analyzed these arguments, IPN reports.

The first argument invoked by the Premier and analyzed by the article author is the fact that such a referendum is not allowed by the Election Code. Article 147 of the Election Code says the issues concerning taxes and budget cannot be put up for a national referendum. So, the Premier was right. The Election Code clearly states that such a theme as the annulment of Law No. 235 cannot be put up for a referendum. Consequently, the President’s initiative does not have legal grounds, said the Sic! authors.

The law already came into force and this is another argument. Even if this wasn’t the best solution, as experts of the think tank “Expert-Grup” suggested then at least three better alternatives, the reality is that the law took effect and state bonds were issued. The stolen US$1 billion was practically transformed into public debt. Trying to annul the law or inverse the process will generate higher costs.

The Premier’s third argument – this forms part of the agreement with the IMF – is harder to be verified. The authors of the article mention here one of the many examples when representatives of the government try to justify their acts or to gain legitimacy by making reference to foreign entities, in this case the IMF.

The Premier assures that the sum has been already partially recovered and will be fully recovered and nobody will pay anything. “This is actually the most important and, regrettably, most doubtful point. According to the Financial Monitor No.3, published by “Expert-Grup”, the measures envisioned in Law No. 235, by which the billion was transformed into public debt, will help recover up to 40% of the debt. The other 60% depend on the results of the Kroll investigation and subsequent actions,” says the article.

The authors conclude that despite the Premier’s statements, as long as there is no certainty about the real recovery of the money stolen from banks, the burden of the debt will affect the public budget that consists of the contributions of ordinary people. On the other hand, neither Igor Dodon’s proposal to hold a referendum to annul Law No. 235 is a viable solution.

The full article in Romanian can be read on sic.md. Sic! is a project implemented by IPN News Agency with support from Soros Foundation Moldova.