Marcel Ciolacu’s first reaction after the statements about Moldovans: It was a joke / My mother was from Tecuci

After provoking a wave of criticism, including calls for his resignation, with a statement made on Thursday in Timișoara in which he invoked the fact that Buzău county is not Moldova and asked people “to stop offending” with this statement, Marcel Ciolacu says that he was it’s a joke.

The prime minister came out with a message posted on his Facebook page saying that he did not want to offend the Moldovans, that his mother is from Tecuci and that he loves all Romanians equally.

“First of all I am Romanian. I love my country and I believe in God. I am a Moldovan just as I am a Transylvanian, Banatian, Oltean or Bukovinian. My mother was from Tecuci. So far be it from me to offend anyone. I see that a joke I made in Timișoara was interpreted and some are trying to speculate politically. It was nothing pejorative. If anyone felt offended, I apologize, that’s not what I wanted,” wrote Ciolacu.

The prime minister claims that his respect for Moldova can be seen in “the big infrastructure projects we are doing here in recent years, precisely to recover the gaps compared to the other regions of the country. The real offense is when you put forward candidates like a tin thief and a criminal mayor from an organized crime group and expect people to vote for them.”

Ciolacu concludes by saying that he always felt a lot of warmth when he was in Moldova and that he will return every time with the same respect and appreciation.

The Movement for the Development of Moldova demands the resignation of Marcel Ciolacu

“For insulting the residents of the Moldova region, Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu must resign!”, is the firm request made on Friday, April 26, by the Movement for the Development of Moldova, a civic association from Iași that campaigns for the authorities to allocate funds and draw up policies for the development of the region.

The request comes after the prime minister made a statement in Timișoara on Thursday in which he claims that Buzău county is not Moldova and asks people “to stop offending” with this statement.

“That’s it, the Banatian from Grindeanu came to build the Autostrada in Moldova. Buzăul is not in Moldova and please don’t offend me. But a buzoian also came who, together with Mr. Grindeanu and the rest of his colleagues in the government, started to bring the people of Timisoara what is right to bring,” said Marcel Ciolacu, answering a question posed by a journalist.

The civic association asks the prime minister to come out publicly and clarify what “personal offense would have been if Buzăul was in Moldova”.

“It is clear that the basis of the statement is primarily offensive to the entire population of the Moldova region, from which the Prime Minister sees fit to delimit himself in a contemptuous way, a truly unique gesture in Romanian politics at the top level until this moment”, continues the association.

Finally, the Movement for the Development of Moldova emphasizes that the statement is a serious one that disqualifies him, and with “such irresponsible statements referring to the citizens of the region of Moldova, Mr. Marcel Ciolacu can no longer hold the position of Prime Minister of Romania”.

Marcel Ciolacu’s statement, at minute 27:20 of the video clip below:

And the mayor of Bacău, Lucian-Daniel Stanciu-Viziteu, harshly criticizes Marcel Ciolacu on his Facebook page.

“Shame on you, Marcel Ciolacu! You and the PSD have always considered Moldova a second-rate region. You took the wealth we produced and distributed it in Kiseleff headquarters to the mobsters who happened to be around the table. You did your best not to develop Moldova. You thought that you would always keep us in poverty, with your hand outstretched to your memorials”, wrote Viziteu.