USR Senator George Ștefanache has announced his resignation from the party and stated that, for a period, he will act as an independent senator, unaffiliated with any political group. Ștefanache says he will continue his mandate in the Romanian Parliament and will still represent the interests of the people from Galați.
The senator states that the decision comes after a period of reflection and is motivated by the differences he sees between his own priorities and the direction of the political organization, especially at the local level.
"There are moments when one's personal path diverges from the path of an organization, and this separation never comes easily," George Ștefanache conveyed in a post on Facebook.
The senator argues that while there is a concern at the central level of USR for maintaining the values assumed by the party, these would be diluted at the local level. Ștefanache directly points to the USR Galați organization, accusing the "«assumed» inactivity of the local political structure."
One of the main reproaches concerns the perspective of local elections. The senator states that politicians such as Dominic Fritz, Diana Buzoianu, Oana Țoiu, Irineu Darău, and Radu Miruță will not run for local positions or mandates in Galați and considers that the county organization must be represented by Galați candidates.
"In Galați, USR Galați must have Galați members as candidates, but not just to fill the electoral lists," Ștefanache affirms.
The resignation is presented by the senator as a decision related to integrity and loyalty to the values he says he has assumed. He claims he had to choose between staying in the party, hoping to change things from within, and leaving so as not to become "complicit in stagnation."
"Can I still maintain my integrity if I stay?" is the question the senator says he asked himself before making the decision.
Ștefanache states that he is not leaving "out of pride," "out of anger," or because he is tired, but because he does not want to validate things he can no longer support through his presence.
"I am leaving because I do not want to become a spectator of my own silence. I am leaving because I do not want to validate through my presence what I can no longer support with my conscience," the senator conveyed.
In the conclusion of the statement, George Ștefanache leaves open the possibility of continuing his political activity and says he wishes to remain involved in the public life of Galați.
"I hope that my political path does not end here. It will continue where I can remain authentic, clear-headed, and useful for Galați," the senator further declared.
Ștefanache concludes his message by reaffirming that he will continue to represent the people of Galați in Parliament and will continue his political fight against the PSD at the local level.