A letter by the President of Romania Traian Basescu reached Romanian PM Calin Popescu Tariceanu yesterday, demanding him to give up his recommendation that Liberal Norica Nicolai should be appointed a minister of Justice. The PM was also asked to recommend a politically independent person to take over the Ministry of Justice. The President motivated his refusal by invoking the negative public perception of Norica Nicolai's deeds, claiming that to appoint her a minister would just make national and international distrust in Romanian Justice grow. The President reminded the story with a niece of Liberal Nicolai voting instead of the latter in the Parliament and he argued: "Given the need to confirm by facts the political will to build and consolidate an independent Justice, I dare suggest an uncontroversial candidate, able to get respect professionally, as well as from citizens or in the relations with magistrates, a politically independent person." The head of state also highlighted in his letter that he was dismissing this candidacy in keeping with the Romanian Constitution and the Constitutional Court's decision no. 356/2007. According to this decision reached in May 2007, the Romanian President has no veto right on the appointing of a minister. Still the President admitted that the application of the safeguard clause on Romanian Justice was unlikely, but he nevertheless asked the PM for solutions to improve the European partners' perception that Romania didn't carry out its assignments after joining the EU. Liberals stick to the same proposal Romanian Liberals' response is rough, claiming the President is breaking the Constitution in his wish to have a puppet rule over Justice. Liberal Crin Antonescu comments:" Basescu is breaking the Constitution. He has got no means to measure someone's image. Norica Nicolai is a leader of the National Liberal Party, she can't be accused of serving PM Tariceanu. No politician was surprised that she was recommended. It's obvious that he would only put up with a servant, a puppet of his." Puiu Hasotti, a vice president of the National Liberal Party, comments in his turn that the President's decision can but cause a new political scandal and continue incertitude. The Romanian PM would make no comments. He just authored a press release announcing that the government's jurists were analyzing the decision and they would express view today. Politicians criticize the decision The representatives of the Social-Democrat Party, the Conservative Party and the "Greater Romania" Party are accusing the head of state of breaking the Constitution. It is only the young Democrat-Liberal Cristian Boureanu who tried to show the good side of it live on Realitatea TV. Social-Democrat Cristian Diaconescu has interpreted the decision as part of the war between Presidency and government. Conservative Bogdan Ciuca has claimed that Liberal Norica Nicolai is professionally entitled to get such a high official position. (...)

Cristian ANDREI