Costly and quirky, the legitimacy – a desired lady by the aspirants to power

         Attractive, costly and quirky, the legitimacy – a desired lady by the aspirants to power. Although many lust for it, only few are able to conquer it. Once you are in her good graces, you are doomed to success. The mass adores you. You live the feeling that you have the world at your feet. Meanwhile, madam Legitimacy is fickle. She is not spending a lot of time with the same chevalier. In order to have her beside, you shall demonstrate, permanently, that you are the best one and you deserve her. She is coquette, proud and, sometimes, even arrogant, our lady. She does not accept half measures.

         Legitimacy means love, but not a blind one. She does not tolerate lies, hypocrisy and betrayal. At one time, when you do not expect, nor want, you can become invisible. To win her sympathy, you shall put unimaginable efforts, but it can all dissipate very quickly. A word said out of time, a fact that came out bothers her a lot. Suffers. Then she forgets you. And you become invisible. That is different from being invisible. You are no longer credible. Little chances you will recover. Practically, none.

        In politics, the legitimacy justifies the power. The history of mankind, in the stages of its political development, has experienced various factors that ensured the legitimacy of the political power. In Max Weber's classification, they are reduced, synthetically, at three forms of political legitimacy: traditional, charismatic and rational-legal. Modernity, without excluding the first two forms, emphasizes rationality and legality in legitimizing political power, which in turn serves as the foundation for a democratic, stable and durable government.

            A first condition for a power to be legitimate is to be legal, namely to be established strictly according to the law. Compliance with this principle makes the winner to assume the right to govern and the governed ones to recognize this right. In fact, it is one of the fundamental principles of democracy and part of what we call the rule of law.

            In the Republic of Moldova, since the first elections, has already become a tradition, some kind of national sport, that the looser would contest the election's result. Usually, the declaration of vote rigging is accompanied by different charges: falsification of voter's lists, wrong ballot counting, bribing the voters etc. Let us remember that the falsification of election's results was one of the main excuses that launched the events from April 7, 2009. The reasons of this situation can be different: from the mistrust in justice till the traits of the political culture of the citizens. Each time, however, our enthusiasm was limited to accusations, without the toil on proving. Even more strange, after all is consumed, there are some "heroes" for civic righteousness, accusations of fraud, even on the field which they were responsible for.

            We are on the brink of a new electoral campaign. This time a presidential one. In the context of a very uptight political situation, it is important that the electoral exercise will take place in a strict accordance with the legal norms. Both the letter and the spirit of the law to be respected at all the stages, beginning with the structuring of the electoral lists and finishing with the process of counting the votes. In reality, however, watching the ardors of collecting the signatures and registering the candidates for the elections from October 30, 2016, we conclude a tension without a case in point of the political situation, a harsh shuddering between the protagonists of the campaign. Behind them are cohorts of employees, who are very attentive at the speck that is in his opponent's eye, but do not notice the log that is in his own eye.

            Mutual distrust between the candidates at the elections makes the electoral debate to slip from the competition of the projects and ideas, obviously, towards a fair of vanities and intolerance. If you sit and analyze, you realize that, in fact, the stake is not that big. The position of the president, in a parliamentary republic, does not offer too much power to the Head of State. In addition, the precarious situation in which the country is, should calm down the appetites of the people wishing important posts. Here, we have probably to deal with reasons beyond the candidates, the stakes are transferring to the people from the backstage politics. We find that this backstage is often outside of the country. Some candidates do not hesitate to hide the fact that come to destroy more than to create.

            It is known: within the reach of the government are more leverages to use the administrative resources for campaign purposes, from setting the election date until the use of camouflaged electoral advertising by creating events and their coverage. This happens, practically, in all the societies, even those with functioning democracy. In fact, in the interest of the government is that the elections take place without major excesses, so they should give as few as possible excuses for complaints. On the other hand, intolerant opposition representatives have already rushed to turn to external partners with statements that the elections are going to be bilked. Somehow, they laid something: in case of a failure, to fall on something soft. However, it goes on a maximum tension of the situation, which may culminate in post-election agony.

            That is why, the responsibility of a correct deployment of the elections falls both on the shoulders of the government and the electoral institutions responsible for the organization and a good progress of the electoral process, and on the opposition shoulders, always ready to provoke conflict and tension situations for minor infringements. A word to say have the institutions of the civil society, called to watch and monitor the electoral process.

            All those who want a smooth running of the businesses in the country, should take care of restoring the citizen's confidence in the state institutions and, linked to this, in the political class. The legitimacy is based on competence and real facts, not empty words and handling. The implementation of the Association Agreement will give less and less room for maneuver for all those who aspire to enrich personal power. Further will be tougher. Romania's example is eloquent. We hope it will not be too long and among politicians on the bank of Bac river will be completed only by those for whom politics is a vocation and a profession, a saying of the same Weber.