Monday, November 24, 2014

Romania Pontas

Been to heaven and back as I pick up where I left off?

‘‘I want a president who is not corrupt, has a good standing, and understands foreign policy’’

Yeah, I know how you feel.

"Romania’s prime minister defeated in presidential runoff" by Alison MutlerAssociated Press  November 17, 2014

BUCHAREST — Sibiu Mayor Klaus Iohannis won a close presidential runoff election Sunday on a promise to fight rampant government corruption, according to exit polls.

He will replace President Traian Basescu, who is stepping down after 10 years. Prime Minister Victor Ponta, who ran on a promise of stability, conceded defeat after the polls closed.

Ponta, who was narrowly favored to win in some polls, said he had personally congratulated Iohannis. ‘‘We are a democratic country,’’ Ponta said outside the headquarters of his Social Democratic Party two hours after polls closed. ‘‘The people are always right.’’

Ponta called on some 15,000 protesters gathered outside his offices to listen to his message in an apparent attempt to defuse tensions difficulties encountered by expatriate Romanians voting abroad.

The final results may have been swung by 300,000 Romanians who live overseas and voted Sunday, many against the government. There were protests in which expatriates said they had been unable to vote in the Nov. 2 election that led to the runoff.

You know the old saying: Romanians are always right. 

So who is the new guy?

Iohannis, a 55-year-old ethnic German, praised voters. ‘‘Thanks to you, another kind of Romania is beginning,’’ Iohannis said on his Facebook page. ‘‘The Romania we want is not one of conflict or revenge.’’

Uh-oh.

‘‘Your vote and your word are its foundation,’’ he said. “Let’s put the first brick on this building and let it be a lasting one!’’

Thousands of Romanians massed in front of government offices in Bucharest on Sunday, waving flags with the center ripped out, a symbol of the 1989 anticommunist revolt. Others gathered in the city of Cluj after voting ended in support of expatriate voters.

Romanians living overseas must vote at polling stations in the countries where they are, and thousands of expatriates protested after they had to stand in line for hours in cities such as Paris, London, and Munich during the first round. Some were unable to vote.

The government says it has improved the voting procedure this time at facilities, including Romanian embassies.

Ponta led by 10 percentage points in the Nov. 2 vote, and corruption inquiries of senior Ponta aides appeared not to have dented the 42-year-old former prosecutor’s chances.

Iohannis has promised an independent justice system. In Romania, the president is in charge of foreign policy and defense and names key prosecutors and the chiefs of intelligence services.

Gee, I imagine certain chosen people in certain places might have a concern. I'll be alert for any charges of antisemitism for that will be a tell as to whether he is towing the line.

Officials said turnout was about 62 percent, around 10 percent higher than during the Nov. 2 vote. Official vote totals were not expected until Monday.

For a decade, one of the central political battles in Romania has been over the establishment of independent prosecutors capable of uprooting corruption. More than 1,000 public officials, including former Prime Minister Adrian Nastase, one of Ponta’s mentors, have been convicted of corruption in recent years.

Seems like it's an idio$yncra$y and characteri$tic of government no matter where it is found, doesn't it?

Ponta had credited the anticorruption campaign with helping Romania overcome its budget deficit by cracking down on tax evaders. But before the voting, some analysts said they were worried that, despite his promises, Ponta would have slowly chipped away at the system.

Western countries have called Romania to maintain the independence of the courts and continue to pursue corrupt officials.

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Also see: Romania Rejects Right

Romania Rejects Globalists 

Always right!

Outrage in Romania Over Organ-Harvesting Operation 

That is one of those issues (like elite pedophile sex rings and Satanism) that gets very little coverage or follow up.

The Boston Globe Missed This Israeli Operation

It's the coin of the realm if you want to decode the paper.