Constitutional Court head: Parliament can be dissolved again on January 1, 2010

Moldovan politicians and analysts have been discussing the meaning of Article 85 in the Constitution, which says that the "Parliament can only be dissolved once in one year."

The main question has been about whether this means 365 days since the last time Parliament was dissolved or whether once the year changes the legislature may be dismissed.

Dumitru Pulbere, Constitutional Court head, clarified this issue a bit in an interview for Infotag.

The most telling passage is below:

"Question: If the current political crisis cannot be overcome, can the acting President dissolve the Parliament on January 1, 2010?

Answer: Yes. At least that is what the logic of the article in the Constitution tells us. Theoretically, we can all celebrate New Year's Eve on December 31, and then enter early elections."