CHISINAU, February 22. /TASS/. Thousands of people are picketing the building of Moldovan President Maia Sandu's administration demanding the resignation of the head of state and her Party of Action and Solidarity, a TASS correspondent reported from the scene.
Participants in the rally, initiated by the Party of Socialists, brought with them Moldovan flags and banners reading "Down with the PAS mafia," "Stop mocking us," "No to censorship." People chanted: "Down with Maya Sandu," "Down with dictatorship." Earlier, the party had called on other opposition forces to join the protests without party symbols. The police did not intervene in the actions of the demonstrators.
Meanwhile, Igor Dodon, the leader of the Party of Socialists, said that he and his supporters would demand the resignation of President Maia Sandu and early elections this year.
"We demand the resignation of Maya Sandu. Our political goals are to achieve early presidential elections together with parliamentary elections this year," Dodon told TASS during a mass protest in front of the presidential administration.
Moldova has been experiencing a severe energy crisis since 2021, which has led to a sevenfold increase in gas prices and record inflation in 2022. The pro-Western government in Chisinau has tried to blame Russia for the crisis and has promised financial aid from the EU. But protesters say salaries and state payments are not enough to pay utility bills and basic necessities.