The Republic of Moldova Looks West
Maia Sandu, a Western leaning Harvard graduate and former economist with the World Bank, is well known for her stance against corruption
Corina Cristea, 04.12.2020, 13:39
Maia Sandu, a Western leaning Harvard graduate and former economist with the World Bank, is well known for her stance against corruption, and last year she briefly led a government coalition in Chisinau, the capital of the Republic of Moldova. She held the position until she introduced in Parliament a bill against corruption. The legislative assembly filed a censure motion, and her cabinet was ousted. Now, having won the presidential elections running against pro-Russian candidate Igor Dodon, Maia Sandu becomes the first woman president of the Republic of Moldova, an ex-Soviet state that was formerly part of Romania. As a guest analyst for Radio Romania, Ovidiu Nahoi, editor-in-chief for Radio France Internationale, explained what it means for such a conservative society to elect a woman president:
“This is an absolutely remarkable result. Here we have to look at the contribution of the diaspora, which tipped the scales so deeply in Maia Sandus favor. However, Maia Sandu also won domestically, and this is absolutely sensational — she won against the background of a disinformation campaign of an intensity which we can hardly imagine over here. Daily, a plethora of lies were told — that there is going to be a civil war, that she would ban the Russian language, that she has an arrangement with Angela Merkel to bring in refugees to the Republic of Moldova, that she would apply a decadent Western agenda, including LGBT rights, and so on. This could have quite an impact in a conservative society. Then there was the daunting campaign run by the church, the Metropolitan Bishopric of Moldova, which is under the tutelage of the Russian Orthodox Church, which has always supported the anti-Western, pro-Russian factions. At the same time, you have the votes from Transdnestr, cast by people who were bused in, or brought over with various means of transportation, which skirts the limits of electoral law in Moldova, even violates it, in an attempt to turn the vote. That happened in 2016, but not this time. It was a wave that came from the diaspora, but also from within the country, which is really remarkable, because the people look to the West to pull the country out of poverty, gridlock, abuses, and corruption. Clearly there is no alternative to the East in this sense.”
Her inauguration is scheduled for December 24, but the president has already made public her agenda. Maia Sandu emphasized the fact that the country is in an across the board crisis, and that things could be solved through gradual action in a three pronged approach: a positive foreign policy that is beneficial for the citizens, taking the country out of isolation, a state budget for 2021 to provide the resources needed by the economy, and firm action against corruption. In an address to the people, Maia Sandu said she would put a stop to graft in public spending and reform the political class. She said that after she is seated, she would start consultations with political parties to identify solutions to the most stringent problems facing the Republic of Moldova, and called for unity:
“I will make every effort for Moldova to have good, pragmatic, mutual respect based relations with both the West and the East. Internationally, I will focus on obtaining the help needed to get out of the health and economic crisis. I want us to overcome division, to unite society in both foreign and domestic policy. To build a dignified foreign policy, able to benefit our citizens. We have to bring Moldova closer to European standards, with reform and hard work here, at home.”
Ion Tabarta, a political commentator from the Republic of Moldova, estimates that we are looking at a turbulent period ahead of us, because of the differences between the Presidency and Parliament:
“This is the first victory for a right leaning candidate. Because over here the structure of the electorate is such that the left has always won, in both presidential and parliamentary elections. Even the pro-European coalitions perforce had a left or center left party in their make-up. One of the main explanations for which Igor Dodon was defeated was the way in which he ran the country and managed the pandemic. It has to be said that in the Republic of Moldova the pandemic was handled politically, not medically. The authorities at some point have practically let things get out of control, and now the pandemic factor is not being controlled. The pandemic has obviously generated negative social and economic consequences. In addition, this summer we had a farming crisis because of the heavy drought, and the most important thing is that the government did not come up with solutions to problems facing the citizens. You asked what we should expect from Maia Sandu. Obviously, to deal with the social and economic crisis. However, we have to bear in mind that the Republic of Moldova is a parliamentary state, and the president has no sway over Parliament. Igor Dodon practically ran a personal government. When he realized that he needs broader support, and that not all of his cabinet can cope with things, he co-opted the Democratic Party into government, a party that has been, and still is, in turmoil, wracked by inner divisions. However, even the Democratic Party has withdrawn from governance. Maia Sandu does not control the government, but people will definitely expect her to bring about improvements. Maia Sandu said she was in favor of early elections, because this parliament is not legitimate. Of course, Parliament will act in self-preservation, and in this political dispute it is paramount for Maia Sandu to have the population on her side.”
During the campaign, Sandu promised that she money would once again flow from the EU, moneys that were cut off for a period of time for several projects, saying that this would allow the Republic of Moldova to survive, according to analyst Ion Tabarta.
