Moldova will strengthen its institutions respecting EU recommendations, said Osipov, who is responsible for "re-integration", meaning preserving the territorial integrity of Moldova and resolving the conflict in Transnistria.
The country, wedged between Romania and Ukraine, has been unable to elect a president since April 2009, after successive votes in the 101-seat parliament failed to secure the required majority of 61 MPs to elect a new head of state.
The four pro-European parties have 53 MPs in parliament - enough to form a government but too few to vote through their choice of president. The Communist Party controls the remaining 48 seats (EurActiv 13/10/09).
Following the recommendations of the Venice Commission - a Council of Europe advisory body set up after the fall of the Berlin Wall to provide advice to new democracies on draft constitutions and constitutional amendments - Moldova's new leadership has adopted a strategy to break the deadlock, Osipov said.
He outlined the strategy as follows:
- There will be early parliamentary elections, the date of which is yet to be set. The existing parliament will be dissolved on 16 June, a year after the beginning of its mandate.
- A solution must be sought, in parallel, to avoid another deadlock over the election of the president. The ruling coalition is planning to modify Article 78 of the constitution to allow the president to be elected by direct universal suffrage.
- Doubts persist as to whether such a constitutional amendment will be supported by the present parliament. A constitutional majority is required, meaning the support of the Communist Party or part of it. Should the Communists refuse to back the changes, a referendum will be organised to change Article 78, introducing direct elections for the presidency, as was the case until 2000.
Osipov explained that although the president was elected by parliament, the prerogatives of the head of state had not been diminished. Regrettably, he said, this led to the usurping of power by former President Vladimir Voronin under the Communist-led government.
With the Communists in government and holding a comfortable majority in parliament, the state turned into a "quasi-authoritarian regime," Osipov said, with all institutions governed by Voronin as the separation of powers became an empty word.
On these foundations, a corrupt system could easily develop and much is now being said about the murky dealings of Voronin and his family, Osipov explained. The authoritarian nature of his regime led to the tragic events of 7 April 2009, when the government tried to present anti-Communist protests as an assault against parliament and the state institutions (EurActiv 08/04/09).
Asked about the current high level of support for the Communist Party, which some opinion polls identify as Moldova's biggest political force with 30% backing, Osipov said one should treat opinion polls carefully in a country where no tradition of competition on the sociological market exists.
"It is obvious that the financial crisis doesn't play in favour of the present government," he admitted.
The government member said the assistance his country had obtained from the EU and international financial institutions like the IMF was unprecedented, to the tune of 2.6 billion dollars. Almost half of this was grants and much of the money had been directed at boosting the real economy, he added.
"Moldova is a small country and if this money is well managed, the incomes of people and living standards will improve, and democratic governance will have a better chance to continue its work," he said.
