Several days are left until the PNL National Congress, which was supposed to decide who the Liberals would join in the elections, but the reunion will apparently have nothing else to do than take note of the complete victory of first vice-president Valeriu Stoica.
What happened since a month ago, when Stoica obtained a deferral at the party's National Council? Many things happened, all in favour of the liberal first vice-president, and all built by himself.
Accused by some in central leadership for negotiating with a too left-wing party - ApR - Valeriu Stoica dumped his ally midway, but left room for some apology, albeit post-electoral.
His pragmatism was again on display, because it was not his party peers' doctrinal criticism that made him give up an ApR alliance for the moment. It was the party's hard-headedness in backing its own candidate, Teodor Melescanu, in an obvious decline of popularity.
It would be absurd for Stoica to set his party colleagues against himself for joining a candidate who wasn't a sure winner. On the other hand, the PNL leader managed to persuade Theodor Stolojan, one of the two technocrats who is enjoying a rise in popularity, not only to be PNL's own candidate for Cotroceni, but to join the party, too. Under these circumstances, PNL's participation in the vote on its own lists is not only possible but a potential source of more votes.
A hard blow for the late CDR, resuscitated and led further on the Peasants' tired shoulders! Who vehemently objected to transforming the coalition into an alliance with a Liberal locomotive, preferring to break the alliance.
Who are left without a candidate, after Emil Constantinescu bowed out, and Mugur Isarescu gave an evasive answer that doesn't even remotely look like a yes. And the blows the Peasants took didn't stop there.
First, some of their leaders - although in the second line - publicly said they were going with Stolojan, and immediately after exclusion from PN?CD, they joined the PNL, live on television. Perhaps some high-ranking UFD members - for now, Peasants' only ally - will head the same way.
Then, civic organisations within the former CDR, called to offer a platform of support for Premier Isarescu's need for independence, failed to answer in unison. Some said they would stick to Stolojan, to the Liberals.
One after another, various faithful members of CDR-2000 are publicly voicing disagreement with the Liberals' candidate for Cotroceni. Unfortunately, although their opinions as politicians are in full concord with personal opinions and principles, these outbursts are, politically speaking, useless. On the contrary, they close doors otherwise left open by Stoica.
Very interesting was Stoica's attitude to Premier Isarescu, who has more support he would want from CDR-2000 for a potential race for Presidency. The PNL leader did not for one moment show hostility to the Premier; although "Isarescu for President" wasn't his idea, he pitted Stolojan and Isarescu against each other and proposed them to run on PNL's behalf. Stolojan himself tried - by his own account - to persuade the Prime Minister that he would be best for Cotroceni.
But as Isarescu passed on the chance to become a Liberal, Stoica calmly settled for Stolojan. Valeriu Stoica's pragmatism has again showed up, because, ultimately, the two technocrats enjoy roughly equal popularity, roughly the same electorate, and credited with roughly the same chances of defeating Ion Iliescu.
But Stoica had to make sure the chosen person was sufficiently well associated with PNL to pull the party upwards, and Isarescu's expectations of independence could not serve PNL's post-electoral prospects.
And still, Valeriu Stoica's biggest pre-electoral problem remains a sudden candidacy from the independent Isarescu. Who may just be more charismatic than Stolojan. Will Valeriu Stoica attack Isarescu? Perhaps, behind a thick veil, and trying to dig his already disoriented supporter base.
For now, he has made a subtle hint that, should Isarescu be elected, he would be isolated from Parliament, that is, from political parties.
Of course, Valeriu Stoica has some doctrinal opposition within the PNL itself. Dan Amedeo Lazarescu said he would demand the Congress to dismiss the leadership for attempting to negotiate with the Social-Liberal Initiative. Stoica retorts politely, but ironically: how come the same people support the candidacy of Isarescu, an old-time GUVR member, an organisation that originates from the same lot as the ISL?
As to the charges of doctrinal deviation from the right to the centre and from liberalism to social-democracy, the PNL leader responds with the same pragmatism: what is worse, to ally with the right wing of the left or to let the ten-year-old left, the former FSN, reclaim power? Which, between the lines, means: is it better to be pure Liberals in the opposition than less-hardline Liberals in power?
After all, in a time and in a country where no party has behaved according to its stated doctrine, any mixing is possible. And politics is a game of percentages, because doctrine serves no good if you can't make it to Parliament.
What remains is the accusation that Stoica intends to rally, after the elections, with PDSR. Being an ordered individual, the PNL leader leaves the issue of post-electoral alliances for the right time - after the elections. As things stand, Valeriu Stoica has taken the Liberals' destiny into his own hands - "through ourselves," remember - and so far, it's working out great.
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