Bolojan Launches Devastating Attack on PSD: We Can’t Compete When It Comes to the Talent for Lying

Bolojan sounded the alarm about the country’s economy, emphasizing that Romania is not on a stable path and that a government crisis was the last thing the country needed.

“The deficit must be corrected; the budget for interest payments amounts to 2.9% of GDP. So, half of the deficit target is just interest payments,” he explained, noting that the solutions are limited: increasing revenue or cutting spending.

Regarding structural reforms (e.g., pay for regulatory authorities, judges’ pensions, administrative reform), the PNL leader cited a constant deadlock.

Ilie Bolojan anunță negocieri pentru un guvern minoritar. Bolojan: Decizia PNL este să nu mai facă o coaliție cu PSD

STENOGRAME. Tensiuni în ședința PNL. Motreanu anunță ruptura definitivă de PSD și propune o rezoluție / Ilie Bolojan: „La talentul de a minți nu putem intra în competiție” / Thuma îl acuză pe Bolojan că a pornit un război împotriva lui Nicușor Dan

“As we moved forward with the reforms, we found that progress was becoming increasingly difficult; we were essentially moving with the handbrake on,” said Bolojan.

Ilie Bolojan’s speech became extremely scathing toward the Social Democrats, whom he accused of hypocrisy, misleading propaganda, and an attitude of unwarranted superiority. He dismantled the PSD’s narrative that they had not agreed with certain government decisions, calling this a “technique for shirking responsibility” to find a scapegoat.

“Some people in the PSD have a ‘we’re a 45% party’ mentality, just like in Dragnea’s day. But the PSD no longer has those numbers. This ‘we deserve it’ mentality doesn’t work anymore.”

The Liberal leader took a direct swipe at the recent scandals involving the Social Democrats.

“It’s hard to be credible if you’re involved in shoe boxes, penthouses, and other things.”

“Why are they doing what they’re doing? Do they want to go into the Opposition, or, if they want to govern, does that mean they need a PNL that acts as an annex or is subordinate to the PSD?”

Bolojan also noted that major tensions arose after the PNL began blocking unjustified funding.

“I turned on the lights in the room; I shone the spotlight. I told them: until you get your house in order, I won’t approve your budgets. And that obviously bothered them.”

Despite the attacks on the PSD, Ilie Bolojan called on the party to act responsibly so as not to plunge the country into chaos, acknowledging that the liberals cannot fight with the same weapons on the battlefield of rhetoric.

“If we don’t actually finish the work, no one will be accountable. We can’t compete with them when it comes to the talent for lying. We don’t have that talent. The PNL must ensure this government functions under these conditions; we must do what we can to ensure stability,” the prime minister concluded.

Another tense moment during the BPN meeting featured PNL Ilfov leader Hubert Thuma. According to the transcripts, he issued a harsh warning to the party leadership regarding the risk of political isolation, bringing up the relationship with Nicuşor Dan, with the UDMR, as well as the ambiguity in the relationship with the President of Romania.

His remarks, which were directed specifically at Ilie Bolojan, began with a sarcastic note regarding the disastrous public perception reflected in the polls.

“I’ll start with a joke: I saw that you attended a meeting of the Bucharest organization, and when they asked you how you cope with the attacks, you said, ‘When some people curse you, it’s like a blessing.’ If I follow that logic, and looking at the polls—given that 80% of Romanians believe our country is heading in the wrong direction, and are probably cursing us—I can conclude that we are a blessed party,” Thuma quipped.

Thuma accused Bolojan of tolerating or encouraging the “war” launched by some colleagues against Nicuşor Dan and asked him for clarification regarding his collaboration with the head of state.

“We are concerned, and we are concerned because we would like to know what your relationship with the President of Romania is. I am telling you this because we have recently seen colleagues constantly attacking Nicuşor Dan, claiming that the President of Romania is not committed, does not acknowledge his relationship with you, and I do not understand how we got here. Because he acknowledged his relationship with us when he agreed to be the Prime Minister of Romania,” Thuma pointed out during the meeting.

To underscore the danger of the current strategy of alienating right-wing allies, the PNL Ilfov leader drew a historical parallel with the decline of the Democratic Party during the Traian Băsescu era:

“What worries me most is that the PNL is pursuing a policy of isolation, the same isolation the PD practiced when Băsescu was president of Romania. In 2009, the PD won the elections, isolated itself, and in the next elections, its share of the vote was 12 percent—a 65 percent drop. If we continue this policy of isolation, I don’t know where we’ll end up.”

At the end of his remarks, Thuma criticized the public statements made by those close to the PNL leadership against their former governing partners, citing the example of Vlad Gheorghe.

“I’m also referring to the statement by your advisor, Vlad Gheorghe, who a few days ago had nothing better to do than attack Kelemen Hunor—I didn’t understand the reason. The UDMR has been our partner for 20 years. This isolation of ours is getting us nowhere,” Thuma concluded.