Romanian Pres To Appoint New, “Responsible”, Prime Minister

"They will not have a government puppeteered by Iliescu, Hrebenciuc, Voiculescu and Vantu towards their desired privatizations. I assure you I will appoint a responsible prime minister, behind whose back they will those I mentioned will not be able do as they please," Basescu said.

Former Romanian President Ion Iliescu, social democrat dealmaker Viorel Hrebenciuc and businessmen Dan Voiculescu and S.O. Vantu are the people Basescu claims organized a meeting and decided, together, to make Parliament majority nominated prime minister Klaus Johannis their "front man".

In the speech held today, Basescu went on saying he does not feel like thanking the Parliament for the "present" they offered him on his birthday.

"I don't really feel like thanking the Parliament for the present they offered me today, slamming the second Romanain government. I assure you I will appoint a prime minister who would make the government work for Romanians, (…) not for people who, in their day to day lives, manipulate party presidents," Basescu said.

Romania's Prime Minister-designate Lucian Croitoru lost a confidence vote in Parliament Wednesday as 250 lawmakers voted against his proposed government, leaving the country stuck in a political deadlock.

The government needed 236 votes to be instated.

Croitoru, an economist, told lawmakers before the vote the country needs a stable government, with full powers to carry on with IMF-required reforms, adding a potential halt of the country's agreement with the IMF would bear serious consequences for its external credibility, more so than if the deal had never been signed.

Besides a deepening recession and social unrest, Romania is faced with increased political instability after its government collapsed in a no-confidence vote mid-October, and is in desperate need of the coming two tranches of a EUR20 billion IMF-led loan package.

In the absence of a proper government, however, the loan disbursements may be delayed. An IMF mission is in Romania until November 9 for a second review of the loan agreement it is overseeing.

President Traian Basescu will have to designate a new prime minister, who will then have ten days to propose a new Cabinet. The country's self-proclaimed parliamentary majority of social democrats, liberals, the Hungarian minority party an d other national minorities has said it continues to back Sibiu mayor Klaus Johannis for prime minister, but Basescu is reluctant to designate him.

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