September 6, 2016

Gov't Chief of Staff Dragos Tudorache appointed Interior Minister; ex-PM Ponta under Court supervision

Newsroom, 06.09.2016, 00:00

APPOINTMENT – The Prime Minister of Romania, Dacian Ciolos, has announced today that the new Interior Minister will be Dragos Tudorache, currently chief of staff at the Government. Ciolos said Tudoraches main task is the fair and transparent organisation of the December 11 parliamentary elections. The Prime Minister has explained that he appointed a civilian for this position in order to avoid any suspicions regarding the preparations for the ballot. Tudorache takes over the post from outgoing minister Petre Tobă, who is probed into by the National Anti-Corruption Directorate for aiding an offender. According to prosecutors, he denied the declassification of documents needed in an investigation into several ministry officials accused of embezzlement.

CORRUPTION – Romanias former PM and the ex-president of the Social Democratic Party Victor Ponta was placed under Court supervision for 60 days, in a new corruption investigation. The National Anti-Corruption Directorate accuses him of influence peddling and of being accessory to money laundering. Prosecutors say that while a president of the Social Democratic Party, Victor Ponta reportedly requested and received 220,000 euros from a businessman who wanted to run for an MP seat in Prahova County in 2012. This is the second corruption case involving the former PM, after Rovinari-Turceni, which is currently tried in Court.

ECONOMY – The Romanian economy went up 5.2% in the first half of the year compared to the corresponding period of 2015, and household consumption grew by 10.4%. According to the National Statistics Institute, in the first six months of the year total final consumption accounted for over 80% of the GDP. All economic sectors contributed to the GDP increase, with more substantial influences coming from retail and wholesale, motor repair services, transport and storage, hospitality and restaurants. According to the European Commissions spring forecast, released in early May, the Romanian economy will likely grow by 4.2% in 2016, whereas most banks and financial institutions operating in Romania estimate a growth rate between 4.4 and 4.8%.

EU FUNDING – The European Commissioner for Regional Policy, Corina Creţu, has called on Bucharest to adopt as soon as possible a master plan on the countrys transport infrastructure, which is a prerequisite for a more efficient spending of EU funds. She appreciated Romanias progress in terms of spending EU funds in the transportation sector, but added that in spite of these efforts nearly half of the more than 30 major projects financed from the EU budget initiated in the previous financial year will not be completed in time. Corina Creţu explained that these projects were re-scheduled, so as to ensure that nearly 2 billion euros from the 2014-2020 budget would cover their co-funding. Corina Creţu had a meeting in Brussels on Monday with the Romanian Transport Minister, Petru Buşe, who assured her that the Romanian authorities would endorse the Transport Infrastructure Master Plan by the end of the month.

DIPLOMACY – Slovenias deputy PM Karl Erjavec reiterated his countrys support for Romanias Schengen accession, during a meeting with the Romanian Foreign Minister Lazar Comanescu. The Slovenian official, who is also the acting Foreign Minister, emphasised that Romanias Schengen membership would improve the protection of the external borders of the EU and implicitly help enhance Europes security. The talks took place on the sidelines of the 11th Bled Strategic Forum. Originally scheduled for March 2011, Romanias Schengen accession has been repeatedly postponed, as various Member States voiced their reserves regarding the reform of the judiciary and the efficiency of the fight against corruption. Bucharest on the other hand has always stated that it complies with the technical criteria for accession.

PROTEST – The leading road transport associations in Romania have announced a large-scale rally in the capital city Bucharest on September 15. On Monday, thousands of carriers drove at slow speed in several Romanian cities, to protest the high insurance fees that they have been charged. They argue that the insurance policies for freight and passenger transport companies, which are over 300% more expensive than last year and 500% higher than in 2014 would drive them into bankruptcy.

ENESCU COMPETITION – Tian Tian from China is the winner of the Composition Section of the 2016 George Enescu International Competition, in the Symphonic Music category, with a work entitled “Concerto for orchestra, while Italys Caterina di Cecca won the Chamber Music category with her “Isole per 7 strumentisti. A total of 34 young composers have entered the competition. until September 25, nearly 200 young artists from 38 countries around the world are in Bucharest, living their dream of becoming the worlds greatest musicians. This years Enescu Competition also brings to the same stage established artists, jury members and winners of the previous editions who have made an international career in music.

(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)