Embattled Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta has resigned after mass protests over the Bucharest night club fire that killed 32 people and left dozens severely injured.
"I have the obligation to see the legitimate grief in society. People feel the need for more and it would be a mistake from my part to ignore this," Ponta said in a statement Wednesday morning, according to Romania-Insider.
Thousands of Romanians gathered in the capital of Bucharest Tuesday to protest the deadly club fire. They held the government responsible for the incident as there was only one exit at the Colectiv nightclub, where the fatal inferno occurred Friday night, according to DW.
"I hope that my resignation and that of the Government will meet the expectations of those who protested and that we will soon return to reason and rational solutions for what is to be done in Romania," said Ponta.
The deadly inferno started during the fireworks show when a band was playing in the club, as HNGN previously reported.
The embattled premier had earlier been charged with several counts of corruption, including fraud, tax evasion and money laundering in one of the most high profile criminal cases in the country.
Romania's National Anti-corruption Directorate (DNA) accused Ponta of receiving $61,000 from a close ally and former minister Dan Sova, who had been under investigation for his firm's contracts with two energy companies for more than a year. All charges against him date back between 2007 and 2011, before he became prime minister in 2012.
