Liberals Ludovic Orban and Cristian Busoi have launched on Monday candidacies for the Liberal Party leadership, both claiming support for private initiative and for business development, for a partnership with the business environment. Nevertheless, there are issues they see and approach differently. Find out what do they have in common and what is making them compete.
Orban says has support of 27 branch presidents
Liberal Ludovic Orban (photo 1) has submitted his candidacy for the PNL chairmanship on Monday, with the draft motion ‘The National Liberal Party – Force of the Right’, announcing at the same time that he has the support of 27 branch presidents.
“As far as I know, there are currently 27 signatures of branch presidents, but behind these signatures I would like to say that there is the expression of the will of the county organizations, either by consulting the county office or by consulting the county director or by consulting the PNL local elected representatives. No president who has signed my motion, signed it because he wanted it so, without taking into account the will of the organization he is leading,” Orban said.
As for the motion, Ludovic Orban stressed that this is the “back bone of the future political program and of PNL’s future political strategy,” given that the text will be subject to a wide debate in each county organization and will be sent to each party member.
“Any idea, any proposal, any beneficial contribution will become part of my motion after winning the position of PNL chairman,” he pointed out.
Ludovic Orban stressed that he is supporting a team of “serious, strong, powerful people who have succeeded in electoral competitions,” and who are an honour for PNL.
“I am a faithful man, I love my family, I love my country, I am a convinced liberal, up to the bone marrow. I’ve fought for the promotion of the ideas of freedom and democracy, right after the Revolution. I have not ran away from any battle, I’ve never ran out of the battlefield. I am a team man, a man who has been with my colleagues in all the electoral campaigns all over the country,” he added.
Orban added that he wants to build “a National Liberal Party that has the force to win all the elections from now on.” He mentioned that he relies on “a human basis of remarkable quality”, but that he is also convinced that PNL has the ability to regain the “civilized, educated, dynamic” trust of the Romanian electorate.
“As a political party, we fight for individual rights and freedoms. We support investments. We support any Romanian who wants to set up a business. We want to turn the administration not into the citizen’s enemy, but into the citizen’s partner. We aim to strengthen local autonomy and to allow the application of the principle of subsidiarity, to allow the local elected people to implement the development projects of the local units,” Orban said.
Busoi want to recover the lost electorate
“PNL, the party of the future. For a right, balanced and strong Romania” this is the programme and the motion supported by Cristian Busoi (photo 2) during the campaign for PNL chairmanship. “The most important test of my generation is to prove realism, to show we are able to understand who we are, in what political moment we are, and what Romanians expect from us. PNL is the force to fight p
“I am PNL member for 21 years and I can state this is the most important moment eversince. We all have to decide where to will PNL be heading. PNL needs changing, it needs a direction. We have to get out of the box, to open the windows and look at the electorate. PNL needs to change or it will not be able to defeat PSD. Without recovering the electorate we have lost, there is no way to defeat PSD,” Busoi said.
He added that without the 15-20% of the electorate which voted for President Iohannis in 2014, PNL cannot defeat PSD.
“As PNL member I was serious, attachment and motivation to promote a good image for PNL. I will carry on this campaign by going to all party members, I will talk to all party members, no attacks and adversities. The campaign should be focused about the future of the party,” Busoi said.