February 3 (SeeNews) - Romanian president Klaus Iohannis said on Friday he is concerned by heightened social tensions following the government's decision to backtrack on fighting graft but assured investors the economy remains in good shape and they don't have to worry.
"Investors are not threatened, Romania's economic situation is still very good and I think it will stay good, so no problem for investors," Iohannis told reporters upon his arrival in Malta for an informal meeting of EU heads of state and government. His statement was aired by the EU Council video service.
Source: https://tvnewsroom.consilium.europa.eu/
Iohannis spoke a day after the Romanian unit of French credit insurance agency Coface said the protests against the government decision is prompting investors, who planned to invest in Romania, to postpone their decision and to focus on other markets until they see more stability in the country. Also on Thursday, the Foreign Investors Council (FIC) in Romania joined its peers from the business community to express its concern over the changes to the Penal Code which threaten to derail the country's anti-corruption drive.
Some 220,000 people protested in Romania and abroad for a third straight day on Thursday against the government decree which will weaken the fight against corruption and help politicians avoid criminal prosecution on graft charges.
"I am very concerned and I have to admit, even if it's hard for me, that the situation in Romania is very complicated, but we have hundreds of thousands of my Romanians out in the streets and I trust them, I trust my people. I believe in Romania, so I am convinced that we'll find good solutions in the end, the rule of law has to prevail, European values have to prevail and this is what I believe will happen," the president told journalists.
Also on Friday, the president asked the Romanian parliament to address the issue of growing social unrest at its plenary session on Tuesday.
On Thursday, while people were gathering to protest all over the country, Romania's prime minister Sorin Grindeanu said the government will keep in place its decree which, among other things, makes abuse of office punishable by jail terms only if the offence has resulted in a loss of more than 200,000 lei ($47,500/44,000 euro).
The decree, hastily adopted on Tuesday, has been challenged at the constitutional court by Romania's Superior Council of Magistracy, president Iohannis, prosecutor general Augustin Lazar and ombudsman Victor Ciorbea. Romania's top court is expected to announce on February 7 when it will consider the challenges to the decree.
Meanwhile, protests were ongoing in Bucharest and other Romanian cities as of 16.00 CET on Friday.
(1 euro=4.5156 lei)