The Socialist councilors of the Chisinau Council will submit to court a preliminary application to demand that the order to name Silvia Radu as acting mayor of Chisinau should be annulled because this decision is illegal, according to them. “An acting mayor cannot name a successor as acting mayor,” the leader of the Socialist group Ion Ceban told a news conference on November 8, IPN reports.

Ion Ceban said the application was signed by 19 Socialist councilors. The Socialists will also file a challenge to the Constitutional Court.

The councilor said the law on the status of Chisinau municipality offers “royal powers” to the mayor general and this law was voted by the Liberal Party, which now complains about the created situation. Namely this law was used to name Silvia Radu to post. “We continue to believe that this appointment was organized by the Democratic Party and this party does not deny it,” stated Ion Ceban.

According to him, the Liberals are confident that Dorin Chirtoaca will not be dismissed in the November 19 referendum and this will return to the City Hall, but he would thus become blackmailable owing to the criminal cases started against him. The only solution to prevent the Democratic Party from taking control of the capital city is to organize early mayoral elections in Chisinau municipality. There are two ways for achieving this – the referendum to dismiss Chirtoaca from mayoralty is successful or Chirtoaca voluntarily tenders his resignation.

The Socialist councilor said now the citizens of Chisinau have to choose between taking part in the referendum and allowing the Democrats to take over the capital city.