Leaving behind the Elections of the European Parliament, a new Election is on the way. ‘Europe’ has to decide about the new President of the European Commission. It is more than interesting to follow the current debate which in comparison to the first decades of the Union remains the same.

Who has the democratic right to vote for the Commission’s President? the 27 Heads of Government Member States or the European Parliament? Are we a union of people or a union of States? Is the Commission a quasi-government or a political secretariat?
Depending on the way you answer these questions, you have a different result in the choice of the Commission’s President. At the meeting of the European Council on 18-19 June, national leaders agreed to unreservedly nominate José Manuel Barroso for a further mandate as President of the Commission.

According to the Treaty of European Communities, the European Council nominates a candidate and the European Parliament approves (simply majority of the present MEPs is needed). Lisbon Treaty requires absolute majority of the total number of the MEPs. That means that whoever is the nominee he/she certainly needs the majority of the Parliament in his favor. Jose Manuel Barosso, current President, has the support of the EPP party which has a big majority in the European Parliament. But with the Parliament’s Liberal, Socialist, Green and GUE/NGL groups having confirmed their objection this approval will not be a formality. As an alternative they present Guy Verhofstat, the former Belgian prime minister. An other name on the table is Mario Monti, former Commissioner. Possible date of the election is mid of September but it seems that MEPs want to delay it. Their intention is to wait the results of the Irish referendum and of course which rules will apply , Treaty of Nice or Lisbon.

Nobody should be indifferent for this election! The truth is that ‘European Union’ finds itself in a crucial moment for economic questions. The choice of the next Commission’s President is vital for the future of the Union. Even if the scale turns to ‘a union of states’ and not yet ‘a union of people’, the Commission being the initiator of the common policies defines the next steps of the whole European Union. Its President shall be a wise choice, a choice based upon concrete vision and answers to the challenging questions of our generation. Unemployment, economic crisis, privatization, social security system, higher education, health care system, climate change need a ‘right-here-right-now’ sustainable plan.
Who is the right candidate to give solutions and is there a European leader to lead Europe in the 21st century, are both questions which will be answered by history! |