A NEW SOCIAL DEMOCRAT PARTY IS RISING: Independents are setting up their own left-wing party

• The new party may appear by summer and will focus on areas such as agriculture, healthcare, education and pensions

• For now, PD-L rules out a merger and wants an efficient collaboration between parliamentarians

The parliamentary group of independents is working on setting up a new political party with a center-left-wing orientation.

The Union for Progress or the Romanian National Union are two of the names being thrown around which will fight with the Social-Democrat Party for voters.

The leaders of the parliamentary group of independents - which collaborated with PD-L in the Government and in the Parliament - defend the creation of the new party by the fact that according to them, PSD strayed from the social-democrat doctrine.

The promoters of this new political project are expecting to enlist several social-democrats parliamentarians, especially after the changes in the leadership of the Social-Democrat Party, which caused some discontent among its members.

Besides, after the congress of the Social-Democrat Party which was won on Sunday by Victor Ponta and lost by Mircea Geoană, reputed members of the parliament such as Şerban Mihăilescu, Ioan Munteanu or Culiţă Tărâţă, left PSD to join the parliamentary group of independents, thus joining other reputable names such as Gabriel Oprea, Valeriu Steriu, or Neculai Onţanu.

• Independent parliament members may soon join a new party

Contacted by BURSA, independent deputy Valeriu Steriu said: "For the moment this project is in a very early stage, and it will most likely involve all the members of the parliamentary group for independents. We are working on its charter and we think we may get it ready by summer. We want to set up a center-left party which will focus on several areas such as agriculture, healthcare, education and pensions".

PD-L is carefully watching this political project, especially as, it may not take long before the number of independent parliamentarians surpasses the number of parliamentarians of the UDMR, its partner in the government. Sources in PD-L said for BURSA, that a possible merger with the new left-wing party is out of the question for now, but PD-L will cooperate with the new faction in the Parliament.

• Could this party join the government straight out of the box?

Political analysts have mixed opinions on the new center-left party.

Political analyst Cristian Pârvulescu considers that the creation of this new party will lead to the destabilization of PSD and will provide president Traian Băsescu with a parliamentary majority, which will bring together both sides of the political spectrum: the right wing through PD-L and the left through the new party.

Cristian Pârvulescu also said that, in its current formula, the group of independents does not have any good organizers among its members "except for Gabriel Oprea who is busy with the Ministry of Internal Affairs", nor any charismatic leaders that could raise votes.

However, state councilor Cătălin Avramescu considers that the appearance of a new left-wing party comes as a result of the decline of the Social Democratic Party, which has been on a downwards slope since the 90"s.

Cătălin Avramescu said: "PSD is losing ground and has been on a steady decline which seems unstoppable since the `90s. The creation of a new center-left party comes as a result of the lost credibility of the PSD in the eyes of its voters".

Last but not least, Cătălin Avramescu also warns that the appearance of the new party will create problems which may be hard to solve by the legislation in effect: the automatic access of the new party to the Government by way of minister Gabriel Oprea (which could very well be the leader of the new party) and the recognition of the new party by the other political factions in the Parliament.