The Romanian Prime Minister, Victor Ponta, has made it through after a no-confidence vote in the Romanian Parliament on Sep. 29, Tuesday.

According to Reuters, it was the first major test for the prime minister since becoming the country's only sitting premier to stand trial for corruption.

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Ponta's coalition, all three parties, abstained that left the main opposition Liberals who had hoped to lure defectors from the ruling camp well short of the 275 seats, which were needed to topple the prime minister from his seat. The 287 parliamentarians voted for the motion with only eight opposing it.

There have been thousands of opposition-led protesters that gathered the Communist-era Palace of the Parliament in central Bucharest that called on Ponta to step down as the debate was underway.

Ponta has defied the calls to resign multiple times and he vowed to serve out his term until 2016. Therefore, the failure of Tuesday's motion means that he is now free to push his program forward---the tax cuts as well as public sector wage increases.

By his government, he will also ask for a new precautionary financial aid deal that had reassured investors ever since the country was rescued from a crisis in 2009 from the International Monetary Fund.

As reported as well by Yahoo News, the no-confidence vote just took place days after the most current aid deal expired last weekend, and it is not clear whether the leaders will grant the country a new credit line.

The PM denied charges of forgery, money laundering, and aiding tax evasion in a case, which mainly relates to his time as a lawyer. He also accused prosecutors of fabricating such a case.

Sadly, Romania is seen as one of the corrupt European countries, wherein tax evasion is very common and bribes are asked for in exchange for everything from state hospital care to business contracts.

But a crackdown on graft by prosecutors has resulted in some of the most senior politicians, officials and businessmen in the eastern European country investigated and jailed. Ponta's former finance minister was arrested earlier this year, as was the head of a mid-sized political party, among many others.

"We are tired of so much thieving," said Petrica Dodis, a 35-year-old clerk from Constanta county who was protesting outside parliament. "We are young, we want something better, instead all we hear about are thefts of millions of euros."

Ponta's critics say his refusal to resign has tarnished Romania's image abroad.

"Ponta must leave. Romania is losing a lot as long as Ponta remains in his post, he lost all of his credibility," the opposition Liberal party leader Alina Gorghiu told parliament.

"Dear ruling coalition MPs: you hold on to Ponta like an old coat: you don't wear it anymore but you don't dare to throw it away yet."

Ponta, 43, has weathered several political storms since coming to power in 2012, including allegations that he plagiarized an academic thesis and the conviction of the leader of his party in a vote-rigging scandal.

While he looks safe for now, his position could again be challenged when parliament debates the 2016 budget in December.

His government has approved double digit wage hikes for doctors, raising the minimum wage, doubling some subsidies and cutting value added tax on food to 9 percent from 24 percent.

The IMF and the European Commission might be reluctant to grant Romania another aid deal if the government's finances are seen as shaky or if it moves too slowly on structural reforms.

Speaking on the sidelines of the vote in parliament, Finance Minister Eugen Teodorovici played down fears of a fiscal blowout and said the budget deficit for 2016 would not cross 3 percent even when planned public sector wage hikes are factored in.

TagsRomania, Romanian Parliament, Victor Ponta, Romanian PM, Romanian Prime Minister