Prime minister Ponta accepts Transports minister's Rus resignation

Prime minister Victor Ponta has accepted on Thursday the resignation of Transports minister Ioan Rus.

"I regret the situation generated by the statements of Mr. Ioan Rus! He has assumed responsibility and filed his resignation from minister! I have accepted his resignation and next week we'll discuss about this portfolio's replacement!" Ponta wrote on his Facebook page, shortly after a talk he had with minister Ioan Rus at the Victoria Palace.

Several political leaders have asked on Thursday the resignation of minister Ioan Rus for a series of statements he made to a private television about the Romanians from abroad and their families.

"Romania has got 3 million nationals, let's say, of the active force, right now in the Western Europe. Out of them, around one million work as steel fixers, blacksmiths and so on. They work in constructions, in speedway sites through Europe. Perhaps they earn rd 1,500 euro. I put it very directly. For those money, their children at home become punks and their wives whores. For 700 euro, half of them would return home," said Ioan Rus.

Subsequently, minister Rus sent a press release with apologies and said the words he had used were "an artistic generalization, a licence."

"I'm sorry if through the expression I have used I've offended anyone, yet my intentions were meant to signal out a serious situation many Romanian families are confronted with, without offending them, but quite with sympathy. I made reference to the family breakdown and the children left to the care of their grandparents or other relatives, as a result of their parents' leaving them to work in other countries hopefully for a better life. I didn't mean to offend anybody's dignity whatsoever through my statements, I only wanted...