Minister of Investments and European Projects Dragos Pislaru reacted on Friday to the Constitutional Court's decision to postpone deliberations on magistrates' pensions, saying that there is a need for "courageous and assumed decisions", not endless delays that "seem only to be buying time".
"In justice, as in any field that needs reform, postponement is not a solution. Today, the Constitutional Court of Romania postponed for the fourth time the decision on magistrates' special pensions. The hearing lasted 20 minutes, and the new deadline was pushed back by another month, to 11 February. In the meantime, inequities remain, tensions grow, and people's trust in the state erodes with every day in which we see essential matters postponed indefinitely," the minister wrote on Facebook.
According to him, the discussion is not - and should not be - about "humiliating" a professional category or endangering the independence of the judiciary.
On the contrary, he added, magistrates need stability, predictability and respect for their work.
"However, respect for justice cannot mean privileges that undermine the social contract and widen the gap between those who work an entire lifetime for modest pensions and those who benefit from special treatment. Reform of the pension system can no longer be postponed indefinitely. There is another truth that cannot be avoided: 231 million euros from the PNRR [National Recovery and Resilience] are also at stake, European funds that Romania will lose if it does not do its job on time and adopt the regulations it has committed to. We are not talking only about a legal or technical debate, but about direct consequences for the state budget and for investment projects on which hospitals, schools and infrastructure depend,' the minister said.
In his view, a serious state honours its commitments - to its citizens and to its European partners.
"We need courageous and assumed decisions, not endless delays that seem only to be buying time. The longer we allow frustration and mistrust to build up, the harder it will be to rebuild respect for institutions. Romania needs a fair, sustainable and credible pension system, and this need can no longer tolerate delay," Pislaru stressed.
The Constitutional Court of Romania Friday postponed until 11 February its deliberations on the new government bill under Prime Minister Bolojan regarding the reform of magistrates' pensions.
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