Moldovan Constitutional court called on Parliament to introduce criminal responsibility for failure of government officials to perform constitutional obligations
The Constitutional Court of Moldova appealed to the parliament to demand criminal responsibility for the non-fulfillment of constitutional duties and court decisions, as reported by Newsmaker.
This initiative concerns Moldovan President Igor Dodon, who has repeatedly refused to sign laws and government appointments.
"There is an article in the Criminal Code on the non-fulfillment of court decisions. Why is there no such norm for the decisions of the Constitutional Court? This responsibility exists in almost all European countries, only we do not have it," the Chairman of the Constitutional Court, Tudor Panțîru, said.
According to the proposed law, the deliberate non-fulfillment or evasion of fulfillment of a decision by the court or the Constitutional Court by a senior official is punishable by a fine of 850 to 1,000 conventional currency units, 340 hours of unpaid labor, or imprisonment for up to three years, as well as the an inability to occupy certain posts or engage in certain activities for a period of two to five years.
This is not the first time the President of Moldova has refused to comply with the decision of the Constitutional Court. Dodon’s presidential powers were temporarily suspended on January 2nd due to his repeated refusal to sign a decree appointing new ministers. Before this, due to Dodon's refusal to sign a decree on the appointment of the Minister of Defense, his presidential powers were temporarily transferred to the Speaker of the Parliament, Andrian Candu.