Radical Romanian leader George Simion, the leader of the party AUR (rated around 20% in the latest polls), approached with rage the minister of energy Virgil Popescu while the latter was defending himself in the context of a motion filed in Parliament.

The radical leader came close to Popescu, shouting at him "You're a thief."

The incident was close to turning into one of the very few physical confrontations in Romania's Parliament.

"This is the first time in the history of the Romanian Parliament that a minister has been physically assaulted while giving a speech. Under these circumstances, I cannot continue the meeting. I convene the meeting of the Permanent Bureau. I declare the meeting closed," the chairman of the meeting, Daniel Suciu (PSD), said, quoted by Hotnews.ro.

The joint session was suspended, and the vote on the motion, scheduled for Wednesday, February 9, will probably be deferred as well.

The reformist party USR has filed a simple motion against the minister of energy Virgil Popescu, whom they accuse of having endangered the national energy system. The motion comes amid a broad increase in energy prices hitting households' budgets.

Popescu, a member of the Liberal Party (PNL), received endorsement from the senior ruling Social Democratic Party (PSD); hence the opposition party has nearly no chance to see its motion passed by the lawmakers.

But it was a perfect opportunity for radical leader George Simion to demonstrate once again his populism in an attempt to gain even more popularity by pointing to a "public enemy" supposedly responsible for the rising energy prices. 

(Photo: Ilona Andrei/ Inquam Photos)

iulian@romania-insider.com