Presidential Administration: President didn't justify rejecting judge Girbovan, but citizen Girbovan

The Presidential Administration on Thursday pointed out, in reply to the stand of the Superior Council of Magistracy (CSM) regarding Dana Girbovan, that the head of state 'didn't justify the rejection of the proposal for Justice Minister of judge Dana-Cristiana Girbovan, but of Romanian citizen Dana-Cristiana Girbovan.' "Romania's President didn't justify the rejection of the proposal for Justice Minister of judge Dana-Cristiana Girbovan, but of Romanian citizen Dana-Cristiana Girbovan, who accepted the Premier's proposal to occupy a minister office in a political government and who tendered her resignation from magistracy. Any other perspective would mean that either the proposal sent by the prime minister for the Justice minister office flagrantly contradicted the fundamental Law, or the nominated magistrate, by accepting this proposal, would have been in disagreement with her own professional statute," the Presidential Administration shows in a release sent to AGERPRES. President Klaus Iohannis finds the opinion of the CSM Judges' Section worrying and meant to make vulnerable, through itself, the independence and prestige of justice and that of the statute of judge, as it induces the idea that a judge can fill in a minister position. "The CSM Judges' Section must explain how could Romania's president have appointed as minister a judge, as it is explicitly stated in the public release. Truly serious interferences in the justice independence are exactly these inexplicable statements from some professionals in the act of justice, who seem to condemn precisely the fact that Romania's president observed the laws and the Constitution of the country. It would have been indicated that, before sending the press release, the signatories consulted the recommendations of the Venice Commission, according to which the judge must resign before competing for a political position, as, even if not designated, he/she will be identified with a certain political trend, to the detriment of independence. The Venice Commission believes, at the same time, that judges shouldn't place themselves in a situation in which their independence or impartiality could be endangered," the Presidential Administration release also points out. According to the source, through the opinions voiced, the CSM Judges' Section shouldn't deal with politics, but promote of a real manner the justice independence and that of each judge, unbiased and within the boundaries of the constitutional duties. On Thursday, the CSM Judges' Section claimed that President Klaus Iohannis' statements about Dana Girbovan, whom one day before he said he would not accept as justice minister, represent a 'true attack on justice independence and prestige." AGERPRES (RO - author: Florentina Peia, editor: Florin Marin; EN - author: Adina Panaitescu, editor: Cristina Zaharia)