Băsescu, face to face with the people he's turned his back on

Traian Băsescu is now keeping silent. His silence is deafening; it is as silent around him as if he were in the dark, at the bottom of the ocean.

If he were to speak (and it is certain that his silence is only temporary - it's just that he hasn't said anything until this moment, as I am writing this article, but he will speak eventually, by the time I'm done), then the only logical word he could utter would be the only logical and right word he could say: "I resign".

In other words, a kind of "Let there be light!"

Even though he hasn't been defeated in this battle for his dismissal through the Referendum, Băsescu is nevertheless a president who has lost his legitimacy.

It would be aesthetic to say "I resign!", within "five minutes" once all the formalities of his reappointment were carried out, to keep his promise he made five years ago, at the previous Referendum for his dismissal.

Because he can only resign from the position of suspended president.

It would be aesthetic.

If he is not attracted by aesthetics, then Băsescu could do the patriotic thing and announce his resignation for the period which would lead to the holding of early presidential elections, together with the parliamentary elections.

It wouldn't be that beautiful, but it would be useful.

Cohabitation doesn't seem possible, this failed "blitzkrieg" will only count as a lost battle, in a political war of attrition, with only two certainties:

1. Băsescu can't win that war;

2. Citizens only stand lose from it.

Therefore, Băsescu can't face the people anymore, because the people have turned their back on him.

• THE GENERALIZED LACK OF LEGITIMACY

Through the never-ending stream of lies coming from Ponta and Antonescu, one notion that is true stands out: Băsescu was elected as a president with five million votes three years ago, and this time, seven and a half million people voted against him.

Thus, he is a president without the legitimacy given by the electorate.

What is interesting is that the referendum revealed the illegitimacy of Băsescu, but it did not legitimate Ponta or Antonescu.

After all, the electorate voted against (and some in favor) of Băsescu, but it did not have the opportunity to express an opinion on the leaders of the USL.

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• NOTE

When he communicated the data collected from the mayoralties (the Ministry of Internal Affairs) and from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Victor Ponta did not provide just one "figure' (like he said, even though figures only go from 0 to 9, and numbers are made up of several figures ...), but instead he sent several categories of "figures', while pretending to leave it up to the Constitutional Court to make a decision.

He has in fact divided those "figures" into categories to make it easier for the Constitutional Court to subtract them from the total number of voters which was announced through the voice of Internal Affairs minister Ioan Rus prior to the referendum (18.2 million).

Thus, Ponta would have probably expected the Romanian Constitutional Court to subtract the approximately 30,000 citizens (who should be deleted from the list of voters - deceased, in jail etc.), and perhaps the over 500,000 (with expired ID cards) and the over 2 million Romanians abroad (which Crin Antonescu said should be subtracted).

A matter of logic:

Ponta was expecting the CCR to make a simple subtraction, in other words 18.2 million, less 2 million = 16.2 million.

Since about 8.5 million votes were validated, that meant a clear majority of 52.46%, meaning that the referendum should have been declared valid.

- Ponta, together with most analysts, are not taking into account the (absolutely theoretical) possibility that those two million people did vote, (but the CCR was forced to take it into consideration, simply because this was the extreme scenario and it had no data which allowed it to disregard it), which would have forced it to subtract out of the number of 8.5 million votes expressed, the same number, of two million.

Thus we have: 8.5 - 2.0=6.5 million citizens, which, compared to the new total of 16.2 million citizens recorded in the electoral lists, represent a quorum of 40.12 %.

Which means that even in that situation, the quorum wouldn't have been met.

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Among this couple of constant liars, Antonescu seems the most out of place, a "second hand" product, permanently intended to be second: he became a senator, ranking second in his college, getting about 9,000 votes and effectively joining the Parliament, only after the senator who got the largest number of votes was appointed a dignitary; he became the president of the Senate ("the second man in the state"), representingthe second replacement of the initial president (Mircea Geoană, replaced by Vasile Blaga); when he finally became "number 1", he was a second hand president , not just because he was an interim, but because that is all he can do.

Not even his Nazi-style salutes, hand stretched out, are authentic - the man does it out of delayed showmanship, born from a superficial mind, he doesn't have Nazi convictions (in fact, he seems to lack any convictions that would last more than 24 hours straight).

Ponta and Antonescu made their political statements after the announcement of the invalidation of the referendum, after they met at the Victoria palace: apparently Antonescu attempted to convince Ponta that they should leave the government.

It didn't work.

Ponta had something to lose, Antonescu didn't.

Now, when Antonescu is calling for citizens to protest, Ponta has to ensure the public order.

Ponta can't "protect the 7.5 million citizens, against Băsescu" - nobody elected him as a prime minister.

What they can successfully do, is to take another shot - try to suspend Băsescu one more time - perhaps the second time it will work.

That is if their colleagues allow them to do that ...

• JUSTICE

The fight around Mona Pivniceru confirms the statement of Traian Băsescu made at the time of his suspension, that the stake of this political war is not his term as a president, but the control over the justice system.

Indeed, one way or another, he has earned the right to continue his presidential term.

On the other hand, the battle is now being waged around the Justice system.

The stake of the appointment of Mona Pivniceru as minister of Justice is the control of the National Anticorruption Department (DNA) and of the Prosecutors' Office of the High Court of Cassation and Justice, thus I don't think that the Parliament will gather to acknowledge the return of Băsescu in Cotroceni, before the CSM achieving the quorum to acknowledge the resignation of Pivniceru and before Crin Antonescu validates her as minister, who is still interim president.

Like Ponta says, the two officials - DNA head Daniel Morar and General Prosecutor Laura Codruţa Kovesi the - will not be dismissed; their replacement will occur naturally, by their positions becoming vacant (October 1st, in the case of Kovesi, and at anytime in the case of Morar, as his term has already been extended by Kovesi).

As the positions are vacant, the Minister of Justice - who has to be appointed by the USL - will make new nominations.

And Băsescu will be forced to sign, like Antonescu said, "just like a notary, the Alpha Male will leave with his tail between his legs".

The big surprise for everybody, is the fact that the Justice system really seems to have really reformed, and to have become stronger as an institution, that it has become accustomed to independence, and it has formed a strong core of decent people.

The courts may no longer dance to the tune of the politicians.

It would be a good reason to post a classified ad, as follows: "Disappointed people, looking for well-adjusted politicians".

Or as a complement: "Romanian politicians looking for a different nation to disappoint".

Hmm...Justice...let's see...