The programs director of the Center for Politics and Reforms Ștefan Gligor said he ascertained the annihilation of the people’s sovereignty and the rule of law in the Republic of Moldova, which are regulated by the Constitution. 2018 is the year of the most serious involution in Moldova’s history since the obtaining of independent until now. The Democratic Party (PDM) led by Vlad Plahotniuc for the first time managed to annihilate the principles of representativeness and self-administration by elections, separation of powers in the state and independence of justice. Ștefan Gligor stated such opinions when he was asked by IPN enumerate the most relevant events or actions that strengthened or, on the contrary, weakened the values of democracy, independence and the rule of law since the previous anniversary of Moldova’s independence.
He noted that since 2015 the constitutional provision stipulating that the national sovereignty belongs to the people of the Republic of Moldova, who exercise it directly and by their representative bodies, has been seriously undermined, while in 2018 this became a formal provision.
The programs director said that by subduing the law enforcement agencies, the PDM managed to constitute a hybrid parliamentary majority that betrayed the people’s will and was subjugated to the will of one person and his associates. By the same methods, the PDM “persuaded” the absolute majority of mayors to join the given party. Within the introduced mixed-member electoral system, the control of the local public authorities is as important as the control of justice for ensuring a victory in the parliamentary elections set for February 24, 2019.
Ștefan Gligor said the annulment of the early mayoral elections held in Chisinau showed that the judiciary and the state institutions are fully controlled and that the upcoming parliamentary elections will be formal in character. But the victory won by Andrei Năstase in the local elections represented the biggest accomplishment of the anti-oligarchic opposition in 2018. “This exercise showed an extraordinary capacity to consolidate society despite the tactics to split and polarize that were widely employed by the PDM/PSRM, to use the media and financial resources against the opposition,” he stated.
According to him, 2018 can be considered the year when the principle of representation of the people through the parliamentary and/or local elections and a functional democracy stopped to work. Ștefan Gligor reminds of the initiative to initiate a legislative referendum through which to annul the mixed, which was repeatedly rejected by the Central Election Commission. “2018 should not remain only the year when the European integration process was reversed, the EU macro-financial assistance was suspended, the local elections were annulled, the independence of justice/rule of law was annihilated, the investigation of the biggest financial crimes and money laundering schemes in Southeastern Europe was delayed and these were hushed up,” stated Ștefan Gligor.
The programs director of the Center for Politics and Reforms considers the Republic of Moldova will be able to celebrate its independence only when each of us guarantees and defends it by cohesion and mobilization for defending our rights. “In 2018, our right to vote was rejected. What else should this oligarchic regime do for us to riposte and to ensure the right to fair and representative elections?” asked Ștefan Gligor. According to him, this year can and should become a year when the citizens of the Republic of Moldova defended their rights to democracy, freedom, independent justice and welfare. To score a victory in this regard, Moldova’s Parliament should be forced to annul the mixed electoral system that was adopted despite the opinion of the Venice Commission and OSCE/ODIHR, with serious violations and against the people’s will.
Repeat of August 24
