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Romanian Lawmakers Change Lower House Rules To Override Opposition Boycott

Romania’s Chamber of Deputies Tuesday adopted an amendment to the institution’s Standing Office rulebook setting decisions can be made with the votes of the majority of office members present and no longer require quorum.
Romanian Lawmakers Change Lower House Rules To Override Opposition Boycott
Oana Gavrila
16 nov. 2010, 15:24, English

The amendment was adopted in plenary session with 173 votes in favor, three against and two abstentions.

The ruling Democratic Liberal Party hopes this change in rules streamlines activity in the Chamber of Deputies where the standing office has been lacking quorum for the past two months because opposition parties decided to boycott its meetings.

Opposition social democrats and liberals have been boycotting Chamber of Deputies meetings since late September, when lawmakers adopted an IMF-required pension bill. Opposition lawmakers said the vote on the bill was rigged and they filed a criminal complaint against Chamber Speaker Roberta Anastase, accusing her of abuse of office and forgery.

The bill amending the Chamber’s rulebook was debated and voted in the absence of opposition lawmakers who left the plenary meeting Tuesday in protest to Anastase.