Romania’s COVID-19 pandemic updates
Romania reported 196,004 COVID-19 cases, according to data released by the country’s Strategic Communication Group (GCS) on Thursday (October 22). 6,163 people died while 141,089 people recovered. Most affected areas include the capital Bucharest (804 cases) followed by the Transylvanian county of Cluj (338 cases), north-eastern county of Iassy (311 cases), southern county of Ilfov (206 cases), and the south-western county of Timiș (205 cases). Much lower figures were reported in southern Romania with Teleorman county in the lead (12 cases). Beds in intensive care units are currently at more than 60 percent occupancy. However, Romanian authorities will make every effort to avoid the country’s lockdown, President Klaus Iohannis said the other day.
Opposition leader, disappointed
The leader of the opposition left-wing Social Democratic Party (PSD) expressed his disappointment with recent remarks made by Romania’s right-wing President Klaus Iohannis. „I regret Mr. President’s decision to isolate himself in a cercle of single-party policies – the National Liberal Party (PNL) policies. I truly hope the Romanian President will finally put on his ‚constitutional suit’”, PSD leader Marcel Ciolacu told reporters on Thursday. Mr. Ciolacu also criticised President Iohannis a few months earlier when he said the president failed to defend the country’s ambassador to Hungary following fierceful attacks of Hungarian Foreign Minister Szijjártó Péter after the ambassador expressed his support of a Hungarian MP who criticised her government policies towards the Hungarian minority in Romania. On the other hand, President Iohannis said earlier this year that PSD was a ‚toxic party’.
CCR ruling expected
Romania’s Constitutional Court (CCR) is expected to issue its verdict on Thursday concerning a case put forward by the Prosecutor’s Office of the country’s Hight Court of Cassation and Justice (ICCJ) aimed at solving a conflict between the parliament’s upper house and the ICCJ. A petition was put forward by Senate’s acting Speaker Robert Cazanciuc after the Prosecutor General’s Office opened a file against Călin Popescu Tăriceanu, the Senate Speaker at the time, for abuse of office. CCR hold talks about the case several times but it failed to return a verdict on the matter.
Alexandru Danga
