The 2012 Romanian constitutional crisis was a major political and constitutional conflict between President Traian Băsescu and Prime Minister Victor Ponta of Romania. A dispute arose between the two regarding the representation of Romania to the European Council reunion of June 28, 2012. The dispute degenerated in civil disobedience and conflicting views between political parties. On 12 December 2012, Băsescu and Ponta signed an agreement on institutional cohabitation, effectively ending the crisis.
Background.
President Traian Băsescu and Prime Minister Victor Ponta became locked in a constitutional judicial conflict over Romania's representation at the June 28, 2012 meeting of the European Council. President Traian Băsescu submitted a complaint to Romania's Constitutional Court in point of the conflict with Government concerning the representation on the European Council. Ponta declared to the Romanian press agency Mediafax that misconception claimed by President Băsescu to the Constitutional Court is between Presidency and Parliament, and Court judges can only determine the existence of a conflict, that can not be solved only by amending the Constitution.
Parliament plenary adopted on June 12, 2012, with 249 votes in favor, 30 against and two abstentions, a political declaration recommending that at European Council meeting on June 28 Romania to be represented by Premier Victor Ponta, not by President Traian Băsescu. That decision triggered a fierce conflict between the two Palaces. As of 2012[ [update]], President Traian Băsescu sent to Premier Victor Ponta a letter which drew attention that participation in the European Council without a mandate from the President legally equalizes with ownership of a constitutional prerogatives of the President. At a press conference, Ponta broke the letter, ironically replying this gesture.
On June 27, Constitutional Court decides that the President is required to attend the European Council in Brussels. Ponta respond in a way that nobody expected. Government takes in authority the Official Monitor, delaying publication of the Constitutional Court decision, regarding participation in European Council and making the presence of Victor Ponta in Brussels to be legal.
Plagiarism controversy.
Victor Ponta obtained his PhD in law from the University of Bucharest, in July 2003, with a thesis entitled "International Criminal Court". Scientific advisor of this piece of work was Adrian Năstase, then Prime Minister in office, who serves a 1-year sentence in prison since 2012.
On June 18, 2012, online edition of " Nature" magazine published the news that Victor Ponta, "Prime Minister of Romania, has been accused of copying large sections of his 2003 PhD thesis in law from previous publications, without proper reference". The charge was made on the basis of documents compiled by an anonymous whistleblower. "Ponta obtained his doctorate from the University of Bucharest while he was Secretary of State in Năstase I Cabinet, who was his doctoral thesis supervisor", the author writes.
Concomitantly, imputation of plagiarism was also published by German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. Karl Peter Schwarz, a journalist from the newspaper and author of the inquiry published by him, commented on the subject in an interview on June 20, 2012, in which showed that the case would be worse than plagiarists politicians in Germany and Hungary, whereas the latter "didn't copy whole pages of the thesis, as he did". News from "Nature", about plagiarism, were resumed by Romanian and international press, in România Liberă, Hotnews.ro, Financial Times Deutschland, The Guardian, weekly Die Zeit, Il Messaggero (Italy), El Mundo (Spain), The Hindu (India), Le Monde, BBC.
A document published by TVR presents the passages of thesis copied in parallel with source texts. It appears that much of the work was copied, word for word, from the following works:
Members of the National Council for the Recognition of Degrees, Diplomas and Certificates decided, after examining the thesis of PM Ponta, that he had plagiarized 85 pages of the work, although in the press had conveyed numbers from 30 to about 130 pages plagiarized from these works.
A detailed analysis in parallel of the texts conducted by journalists from "România Liberă" indicated not only a taking over of the informative parts, but also of the authors' personal assessments, of the rhetorical questions put by them, of the references to older texts of the same author, and orthography mistakes. The doctoral thesis was subsequently published in book form, with a preface signed by even I. Diaconu (author of one of the three plagiarized works), having Daniela Coman as co-author. Other sources indicate author's preface as Adrian Năstase.
On the other hand, National Ethics Council decided on July 18, 2012 that Ponta didn't plagiarize.
 ;templatestyles src="Template:Blockquote/styles.css" / ;(...) council was regenerated by former interim minister Liviu Pop, so that the result of an analysis simulation of the work can be controlled.
On July 20, 2012, Ethics Committee of the University of Bucharest decided that Victor Ponta deliberately plagiarized, finding passages copied on 115 pages of the 297 (namely the thesis excluding Năstase's preface and appendices). On the same day, "Nature" magazine related about contradictory verdicts of Government Ethics Commission and Ethics Committee of the University.
"Diesel fuel" dossier.
President Traian Băsescu and former Minister of Regional Development and Tourism, Elena Udrea, were intercepted in the dossier of former head of National Agency for Fiscal Administration, Sorin Blejnar. President Băsescu spoke on the phone with Blejnar about Rompetrol problem, but also about the situation of a company that has contracts with the State. Elena Udrea also had four discussions with Blejnar, in that they fixed appointments.
The phone of former head of the IRS was heard by prosecutors in the case of diesel fuel imports in Brașov, in that the former head of NAFA was indicted by DIICOT prosecutors for favoring the offender.
Sorin Blejnar called in September 2010 the President Traian Băsescu, to inform him about a construction company, which has won numerous contracts with the State and which has debts. The company belongs to some PDL friends. Likewise, President demanded explanations about Rompetrol and told Blejnar to find solutions together with the Minister of Justice.
The Presidential Administration recognized the interceptions in DIICOT dossier. According to the Presidency, talks between President Băsescu and former head of NAFA focused on the recovery of Rompetrol company's debts to the State, given that combating tax evasion and collection of receivables from the state budget made the object of a CSAT decision of 28 June 2010.
The judicial inspection of the Superior Council of Magistracy initiated an investigation to see if the DIICOT case prosecutor in the Dossier "Diesel fuel" complied with the procedure when introduced interceptions with President Traian Băsescu in the dossier devoid of classifying them and to investigate a possible leak from Brașov Court.
Communique issued by the Presidential Administration.
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Regarding to the appearance in the media of the interception of telephone conversations between the President of Romania, Mr. Traian Băsescu, and former president of the National Agency for Fiscal Administration, Sorin Blejnar, Presidential Administration made the following comments:
(1) – is about three wiretaps of Mr. President Traian Băsescu and Sorin Blejnar;
(2) – discussions focused on debts recovery of Rompetrol company that has towards the Romanian state given that given that combating tax evasion and collection of receivables from the state budget made the object of a Supreme Council of National Defence decision of 28 June 2010, and President of Romania is also the chairman of CSAT;
(3) – Rompetrol debt recovery to the Romanian state was also the subject of discussion at the highest level between the President of Romania, Mr. Traian Băsescu, and President of Kazakhstan, Mr. Nursultan Nazarbayev, during the two visits that the President has done in Astana (Kazakhstan) in 2010 (2 to 3 March 2010 respectively, 1 to 2 December 2010), since the Rompetrol company was acquired by KazMunayGas company, owned by Kazakhstan;
(4) – a honest reading of discussions indicates that Mr. President Traian Băsescu discussed with Mr. Sorin Blejnar about Rompetrol company debts recovery to the Romanian state.
"How Băsescu explains DIICOT interceptions in Sorin Blejnar's dossier", România TV
SCM scandal.
On January 4, 2013, there were held elections for the offices of President and Vice-President of the Superior Council of Magistracy. The prosecutor Oana Schmidt Hăineală was chosen as president of the SCM, after being heard by the members of SCM, with his rival, the judge Mircea Aron. The conduct of elections triggered disputes and controversies between Superior Council of Magistracy and National Union of Judges in Romania, that roughly criticized the elections, whereon it considers untransparent and unprofessional. Likewise, the Magistrates Association in Romania expressed dissatisfaction with the appointment of Oana Hăineală as head of the SCM.
As a release of the situation, the Department for judges of the Superior Council of Magistracy demanded the resignation of honor of Oana Schmidt Hăineală as president of SCM and, simultaneously, asked judges Alina Ghica and Cristi Danileț to relinquish the nomination for Vice-President of the Council.
Corruption scandal.
In a report on justice in Romania, drawn up by the European Commission on January 30, 2013, appear three ministers investigated for corruption. According to a European official, two of ministers referred to in the CVM report are Liviu Dragnea and Varujan Vosganian. According to Prime Minister Victor Ponta, the third one is Relu Fenechiu. Dragnea is being investigated for alleged involvement in fraud in the referendum regarding the dismissal of President Traian Băsescu. Fenechiu was prosecuted, in the summer of 2012, in Transformer dossier, in which he's charged with complicity in abuse of office.
Likewise, the European Commission Report on the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism records that there's intimidation and harassment against individuals in state institutions, like National Integrity Agency, Constitutional Court, High Court of Cassation and Superior Council of Magistracy. "The judicial independence doesn't exist", affirmed Mark Gray, European Commission spokesman.
Beginning of crisis.
Traian Băsescu's troubles began on June 18. Hidroelectrica, a state-owned energy company announced that it was insolvent. It was a move that Ponta hit the "smart guys", which have signed contracts with all governments (right- or left-wing) to buy cheap energy from Hidroelectrica. On the same day, Victor Ponta became embroiled in a plagiarism scandal: "Nature" magazine claimed that the Premier copied his dissertation in 2003.
On June 20, former PSD leader and premier and Ponta's political mentor Adrian Năstase was sentenced to two years of imprisonment after conviction in a corruption trial due to his alleged involvement in the dossier "Quality Trophy". The same evening, as police arrived at his home to escort him to prison, Năstase shot himself in an apparent suicide attempt and was transported to Floreasca Hospital. A week later, Adrian Năstase was transferred to Rahova Prison Hospital.
On June 25, the Romanian Senate decided to alter the functioning of the Constitutional Court law, such that the court will not be able to rule on Parliament decisions, thus facilitating the procedure for suspension of the President. In the following days, the Chamber of Deputies approved the referendum law amendment, which established that the President can be dismissed easily, only half the votes of those who come to the polls. Until that point, the law stipulated that the President is dismissed only if the proposal was passed by majority of voters registered on electoral lists. On June 27, the Pure uninominal law, initiated by Victor Ponta and Crin Antonescu, is declared unconstitutional. On the same day, PDL attack to the Constitutional Court the referendum law and the Constitutional Court Law amending.
In press occurs rumors about filing a penal complaint at Parquet against Victor Ponta by Traian Băsescu, as the Prime Minister to be, then suspended from office. President denies this version, but accuses Ponta that represents illegitimate Romania in Brussels. National Council for Titles, Diplomas and Certificates establishes that Victor Ponta plagiarized in his PhD thesis. Council claims that 85 pages are copied and called for the title of doctor withdrawal. But, before the verdict, Interim Minister of Education, Liviu Pop, dissolved the National Council for Titles, Diplomas and Certificates, such that the decision was void.
On July 3, the Romanian Parliament, at proposal of majority represented by USL, vote dismissal of President of the Senate, PDL leader Vasile Blaga, President of the Chamber of Deputies, PDL member Roberta Anastase and Ombudsman. Through an Emergency Ordinance, government restricts the attributions of the Constitutional Court, restoring them to the 2010 status quo.
President's suspension.
Băsescu was suspended as President of Romania, by Parliament, with 256 votes in favor and 114 against. There were two abstentions. After announcing the results, Parliament proposed that the presidential impeachment referendum to be held on July 29, 2012,