Somebody"s Man

Neither Johannis, nor Croitoru.

None of them will be Prime Minister.

Neither now, nor after the elections.

Udrea or Patriciu? That is the question.

This would be the conclusion of the confrontation between the two major sides which are preparing to clash in the elections, after having both contributed to the ongoing political crisis: on the one side, the Democrat Liberal Party (PD-L) and Traian Basescu and, on the other side, everybody else. The former, PD-L, are insistently suggesting that Geoana, Antonescu, Hunor and Oprescu, and possibly Vadim and Becali, are joining hands to support whomever will make it to the second round of the presidential elections against Traian Basescu.

The quarrel we have witnessed for several years about "the illegitimate interest groups" is now reaching its political climax. For the first time, the candidates are no longer Basescu, Geoana, Antonescu, Oprescu etc. starring as themselves, but the people behind them, the men in the shadows, who are supposed to be manipulating them. Just like in an absurd puppet show. Something like the humble puppeteers standing for "the illegitimate interest groups" battling to control the State.

The political crisis has also revealed another important stake of the upcoming elections, despite the fact that these elections do not include the parliamentary elections as before: which group will manage to impose the Government, having in mind that the money is controlled by the Cabinet, and not the Presidency.

The Liberals and the Social Democrats are cultivating the rumours that, should he be re-elected in December, Traian Basescu will make Elena Udrea Prime Minister. This attack, too, is obviously focused on the interest group that has been mentioned in many other attacks against President Basescu over the years: the Udrea - Cocos group, a faction that split, in 2004, from the Bittner - Petrache group supporting Adrian Nastase.

On the other hand, the Democrat Liberals have started to insistently imply that Crin Antonescu and Mircea Geoana would find Dinu Patriciu acceptable as Prime Minister. PD-L"s manoeuvre is much more sophisticated than what their opponents have managed to come up with, as it subtly reminds us of the Voiculescu - Patriciu - Verestoy axis, which managed the stock exchange coup with Rompetrol shares in 2004, then associated with another notable figure in the Romanian politics, Viorel Hrebenciuc, to have President Basescu suspended from office and finally is allegedly responsible for keeping Prime Minister Tariceanu in office for four years.

Thorough the voice of presidential candidate Traian Basescu, all this intricate architecture now has a name: the Grivco group, and more political heavyweights: Ion Iliescu and Adrian Nastase, who allegedly masterminded the idea to promote Johannis as Prime Minister just to isolate PD-L before the elections.

To Traian Basescu, Geoana is just a puppet in Ion Iliescu"s hands, while Antonescu is "Dinu Patriciu"s man." Each candidate is someone"s "man" as the others also say that Basescu is not actually the real rooster in Cotroceni Palace.

Until now, the presidential elections had the positive characteristic that enabled us to vote for people and not lists, parties or slogans. Now, by his own free will, "the providential man" has diluted his own stature to the petty status of "somebody"s man." A rather thin fellow, who can easily slip through the cracks of our political system inconspicuously. "Somebody"s man," the perfect tool to inconvenience other people"s interests or lead the way to somebody"s major businesses.

While listening to our politicians, questions come to mind:

What are we going to vote for now? Still, people?

Somebody"s people?