After the Monday meeting with the Minister of Finance, Marcel Boloș, USR leaders accuse that the economic data presented so far have been manipulated and that a coalition is shaping up to „continue the disaster” instead of courageously implementing a reform, and under these conditions, the party will not enter the government. Nothing is set in stone yet, and the USR members have been invited to a new meeting this evening at the Government.
The Monday meeting of the parties with Boloș did not convince the USR members, quite the opposite. „The scenario that USR anticipates is one in which this budgetary debauchery and these tax increases that are looming will continue,” said USR deputy Claudiu Năsui, quoted by News.ro.
„We already had clues that the figures presented so far (…) are manipulated or at least disguised, now we had once again proof of these things but not in writing, only verbally.
The biggest problem is not just awakening to the truth, that we should also go through a moment like this, an awakening to the truth in which we are honest about the expenses, the revenues, what are the solutions, what are the scenarios, and so on. The problem is also the fact that this coalition seems to be forming rather to continue the status quo, to continue the disaster,” he emphasized after the parties’ meeting with the Minister of Public Finance.
„The only solution, if we want to overcome this moment, is indeed a coalition, but one that does not just make reforms in words and during the campaign, but actually implements them,” Năsui added.
He did not mention what tax increases were proposed, but confirmed that there was discussion about raising the VAT. „I can’t tell you everything because even to us, only bits and pieces have been slowly revealed,” he explained.
Năsui stated that expenses need to be cut, and if reforms are not made, USR will not enter the government: „USR will join any government that implements reforms, but those reforms cannot mean tax increases. That is absolutely impossible.”
„We will have a National Bureau today where we will discuss our position. We will not divide anything until we know exactly what the future government will do,” the USR representative stated.
„The explicitly stated position by Prime Minister Ciolacu multiple times today, first we form the government and coalition, and then that government will decide on taxes and taxes and the budget is completely unacceptable for us and for Romanians,” the former Minister of European Funds added.
Asked about Nicușor Dan’s candidacy in the presidential elections, Ghinea said that USR already has a candidate and he doesn’t see why they would change that.
„At this moment, we have a USR congress that made a decision that Elena Lasconi is the presidential candidate and I personally don’t see why we would change that, considering it was a successful candidacy,” he pointed out.
Claudiu Năsui specified that the discussions are now focusing on the budget. „We haven’t had any discussions about the presidential candidate today. Our only or biggest issue is what will happen next year with the budget and, in principle, the taxes that Romanians will have to pay, whether they will increase or not, that is the only red line,” he said.