BASESCU SENDS A SECOND PDL PRIME MINISTER NOMINEE

C O N F I D E N T I A L BUCHAREST 000745

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR EUR/CE ASCHEIBE

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/06/2019
TAGS: PGOV RO
SUBJECT: BASESCU SENDS A SECOND PDL PRIME MINISTER NOMINEE
TO THE PARLIAMENT

REF: BUCHAREST 741

Classified By: DCM Jeri Guthrie-Corn for Reasons 1.4 (B) and (D).


1. (SBU) On Friday, 6 November 2009, President Traian Basescu
announced the nomination of Democratic Liberal Party (PDL)
vice chairman and popular Mayor of sector 3 of Bucharest,
Liviu Negoita, for Prime Minister. The announcement came
just one day after his first choice for a Prime Minister,
Central Bank official Lucian Croitoru, was rejected by
Parliament (REFTEL). The nomination followed two rounds of
consultations with parliamentary parties, in which the
National Liberal Party (PNL),Social Democratic
Party (PSD),and Democratic Hungarian Union in Romania (UDMR)
reiterated their endorsement of Sibiu Mayor Klaus Iohannis
for Prime Minister.


2. (SBU) Negoita stated that he hopes to form a
national-union cabinet made up of members from several
political parties and has asked that all of the major parties
meet with the goal of presenting a cabinet on Monday, 9
November. It remains doubtful that the parties will agree to
a power-sharing agreement. If not, Negoita would have 10
days to propose a PDL-only Cabinet.


3. (SBU) Negoita, a 47-year-old lawyer, was recently
re-elected in sector 3 with almost 80 percent of the vote and
has been credited with revitalizing his part of the capital.
Negoita surprised the PDL establishment by refusing Basescu's
request to stand as the PDL candidate in the Election for
General Mayor of Bucharest, a position superior to the mayors
of the 6 sectors of the city, in June of 2008.
That election was won by Independent Sorin Oprescu over PDL
candidate Vasile Blaga.


5. (C) COMMENT: While both Basescu and Negoita made the case
that a fully empowered political cabinet is necessary during
this economic crisis, citing today's International Monetary
Fund (IMF) announcement that the IMF would not disburse the
next tranche of a much needed loan without an approved 2010
budget, the opposition parties believe that Basescu's real
intent is to maintain the lame-duck Boc cabinet until after
the presidential elections. Basescu allegedly views Negoita
as responsible for the PDL's failure to capture the Bucharest
Mayor's office due to his refusal to stand as the PDL
candidate and to poor voter turn-out in his section. Polling
showed that Negoita would have been a much stronger candidate
than Blaga. Negoita probably accepted the nomination as
Prime Minister because he was unwilling to incur Basescu's
wrath by again refusing a presidential request. Negoita is
likely to be rejected by the Parliament but could serve as a
sacrificial lamb to Basescu's goal of re-election by boosting
the President,s appeal in Bucharest where PDL/CSOP polling
shows that Basescu, a former Mayor of Bucharest, has lost
ground to PNL candidate Crin Antonescu. END COMMENT.
GITENSTEIN