CCR reasoning says Orban's designation for PM office doesn't represent "first request" of investiture

Ludovic Orban's designation for the Prime Minister office doesn't represent the "first request" of investiture, according to the reasoning through which the Constitutional Court of Romania (CCR) established that there is a legal conflict between the President and Parliament regarding the designation of the National Liberal Party (PNL) leader on 6 February to form a new Government.

"Taking into account that the existence of a legal conflict has been determined by the designation by Romania's President of the candidate to the Prime Minister office with the violation of article 103, paragraph (1) of the Constitution, the Court notes that this designation cannot trigger the Government investiture procedure. Therefore, as the result of the present decision, the appointment of Mr. Ludovic Orban as candidate for the Prime Minister office, followed by the request of the confidence vote for the [governing] programme and Government list presented by him to Parliament, doesn't represent 'the first request' of investiture in the sense of article 89, paragraph (1) of the Constitution and, consequently, it doesn't represent the moment from which it is calculated the 60-day term, provided by the same constitutional text," the reasoning published on the CCR website on Tuesday shows.

The Constitutional Court established on 24 February that there is a legal conflict between the President and Parliament regarding the designation of PNL leader Ludovic Orban for the PM office, noting that the designation of a candidate must ensure the coagulation of a parliamentary majority, in view of forming a new Government.