PSD leader Grindeanu proposes merging state institutions and caps board pay after baptism backlash

PSD leader Sorin Grindeanu announced on Monday that his party will centralize proposals to merge state institutions, agencies, and state-owned companies within the next two weeks. He also proposed limiting the indemnities of members of boards of administration.

The announcement followed public backlash over images from a private baptism event held in Timișoara over the weekend. The ceremony was for the third son of Alfred Simonis, president of Timiș County Council and PSD Timiș, and Grindeanu served as the child's godfather.

“If people do not like it, they can choose someone else.”

Grindeanu acknowledged that he saw the reactions and understands the criticism from those who felt the extravagant outfits sent an inappropriate message during a period of economic difficulty. He stated that he does not want to seek explanations or minimize the reaction.

As PSD leader, Grindeanu regretted the perception created among people who have strongly felt austerity measures over the past year. He said public officials have an obligation to demonstrate through their actions that they understand these concerns.

Grindeanu emphasized that Romanians must see this concern not only in declarations but especially in deeds. He stated that the party's responsibility is to focus on what people expect: better incomes, jobs, and a restarting economy.

Alfred Simonis, contacted by Libertatea, refused to comment on the event or the online reactions. In February 2025, Simonis had stated that modern social democracy no longer means what it did 30 to 40 years ago and that if people do not like his lifestyle, they can choose someone else.

Simonis previously declared gifts worth more than 160,000 euros obtained at his wedding and at the baptisms of his first two children before asset declarations were secretized in Romania. Asked if he would make public the sum obtained from gifts for the latest baptism, although the law no longer obliges him, the politician said he is analyzing this possibility.