Russia is a strategic partner for Moldova and thus we should have a sensible position towards all the major players – the United States, the European Union, and Russia, too, says former Socialist lawmaker Nicolae Pascaru.
During a debate on the first 100 days of the PAS government, Pascaru described the ruling party’s governing principle as “the ends justifies the means”. Regarding the judiciary reform, the socialist said that “we see those interventions – all those scandals around the Prosecutor General’s Office, the (failure) of the previous idea with competition-based appointments, now with evaluations, things that society does not fully understand ... ACUM and PSRM voted together for Stoianoglo, only for PAS to end up putting pressure on him. In fact, I think that the principle of separation of powers is violated with these schemes that the legislature is trying to implement and which in the future will deal a blow to the quite fragile Moldovan democracy”, said the former MP.
At the same time, Nicolae Pascaru appreciates the government’s concern to mitigate the effects of rising consumer prices. “It’s a good thing that the minimum pensions have been increased, but utility bills are also increasing. Although there has been a lot of talk about medicines, people are again not happy that things are getting out of hand. But the government comes with some illusions, with tales about achievements”.
On another note, “there is this issue with fuel for farmers. We have not seen any legislative proposals to subsidize these farmers so that they remain competitive on the international market”, says the socialist.
“The government is far from the recommendations of civil society. There are many experts, a number of NGOs with great ideas and proposals, but they aren’t considered. As for diplomacy and international relations, they must be balanced: we are a neutral country, we should not be rushing into the embrace of NATO. The European Union is not giving us membership any time soon. We must not spoil our relationship with the Russian Federation, which is a strategic partner. We must have a sensible position towards all the players: with the United States, with the European Union, but also with the Russian Federation. Disregarding this geopolitical force can cause problems in the future that Moldovans will have to pay for with their meager incomes”, said Nicolae Pascaru.
On coronavirus vaccination, he thinks the authorities should be more “efficient”. Pascaru says PAS’s door-to-door campaign to convince people to get vaccinates “looks more like a joke”. Instead, “there should be teams of doctors, transport, pre-arranged sites, where people can get some rest after getting jabbed to avoid complications”.
Given that the Criminal Code already has provisions that protect women from domestic violence, the former deputy believes that ratifying the Istanbul Convention “was not a good idea, because we see huge backlash from Moldovan society, who needs completely different things. We expect Parliament to discuss issues that improve the lives of Moldovans, increase the minimum wage, reduce the cost of utility bills. We expect a not so good situation in the spring: prices are rising, and I do not think that the lives of Moldovans will be better”, said Nicolae Pascaru.
The debate on the first 100 days of the PAS government was the 211st installment of the “Developing Political Culture” Series, implemented by IPN with he support of the Hanns Seidel Foundation.
