The Week in Review 31.03-06.04.2013

Here are the headline-grabbing events of the past week in Romania.

Corina Cristea, 06.04.2013, 17:41

• Nominations were made for the chief of the National Anti-Corruption Directorate and the Prosecutor General.
• April 1st brought new price increases.
• The economic growth rate for 2012 was higher than estimated.
• New redundancies were announced in the Romanian industry.
• The freight division of the National Railway Corporation will be privatised. Floods were reported in many parts of the country.

Nominations were made for the chief of the National Anti-Corruption Directorate and for the Prosecutor General

Prime minister Victor Ponta, who is also the interim justice minister, has presented the Superior Council of Magistracy with his proposals for the Prosecutor General of Romania and the chief of the National Anti-Corruption Directorate. The two nominees are Tiberiu Nitu for prosecutor general and Laura Codruta Kovesi for the Anti-Corruption Directorate. The prime minister said his choices sought to ensure stability at the top level of the two institutions, which lately have been working without full-term leaders. President Traian Basescu, who has the last say on the appointments, after the Superior Council of Magistracy has also given its opinion on the nominations, hinted that he agreed with the prime minister’s proposals.

However, the two nominations did spark criticism among prosecutors, magistrates and politicians. The associations of prosecutors and magistrates argue that the two nominations for these institutions of the Romanian judiciary are the outcome of a political compromise. Moreover, the professional associations demand the withdrawal of these proposals and the start of the public candidate selection procedures agreed on by the former justice minister Mona Pivniceru with the European Commission.Ponta’s decision has also been harshly criticised by the Liberals, which together with the prime minister’s Social Liberals, make up the ruling Social Liberal Union.

The Liberal leader Crin Antonescu said the nominations are the outcome of a questionable agreement between the prime minister and the president, instead of relying on a transparent procedure, professional excellence and political independence. Moreover, Antonescu, who continues to accuse Codruta Kovesi of serving the interests of president Basescu, announced that his party gave up the justice minister position, to which they were entitled thanks to an agreement within the ruling coalition. In turn, the European Commission, which continues to watch the Romanian judiciary closely, confirmed having acknowledged the two proposals.

April 1 brought new price increases

On April 1st a new co-payment system was introduced in the Romanian public healthcare, in the form of a fee to be paid for in-patient services. According to the Health Minister Eugen Nicolaescu, the co-payment system is intended to prevent fictitious hospital admissions. He explained that patients will only be charged a small fee, of 1 to 2 euros, upon hospital discharge. Exemptions from the rule will be applied for patients with chronic diseases included in national healthcare programmes, underage patients, pregnant women, low-income pensioners and people with disabilities, as well as for emergency hospital admissions. Also starting on April 1, excises on tobacco and alcohol are higher, while the fees for passport issuance and for crossing the Danube were raised as well.

The economic growth rate for 2012 was higher than estimated

The National Statistics Office confirmed that the upward trend of the Romanian economy in 2012 was stronger than predicted. Un-audited data made public by the Institute indicate that last year the Romanian economy grew by 0.7%, instead of 0.3%, as originally estimated. According to economic analysts, this significant growth rate was prompted by better-than-expected performances in industry and commerce. Prime minister Victor Ponta has been quoted as saying that “because of the disaster in agriculture and of the drought, achieving more was impossible. In our region, we were the only country with an economic growth in 2012, and it is important for us to maintain the course in 2013.”

New redundancies were announced in the Romanian industry

The employees of the Romanian steel works sold for a symbolic price by the Russian giant Mechel call for an immediate intervention of the Romanian government. The employees are angered by the fact that the small, almost unheard of, Russian company that took over the Mechel assets is not interested in rescuing the five units that were once thriving industrial producers. Between 2008 and 2012 alone the Romanian steel industry made some 10,000 people redundant. Another emblem of the Romanian industry, the Oltchim Ramnicu Valcea chemical works in southern Romania continues to struggle with financial difficulties. As insolvency procedures unfold, over 1,000 employees will be laid off and another 300 temporarily idled. Oltchim, one of the large state-owned companies to be privatised, cannot rely on state aid, because such measures are not encouraged by the European Commission.

The freight division of the National Railway Corporation will be privatised

The government has announced this week the privatisation of the freight division of the Romanian Railway Corporation. The only criterion in awarding the contract will be the price bid by the interested parties. The privatisation of this company is one of the commitments made by Bucharest to its international lenders. Over the past five years, the company lost around 270 million euros. Another division of the railway corporation, namely the one managing the railway infrastructure, is also facing problems and will lay off personnel.

Floods were reported in many parts of the country

Because of the heavy rainfalls, many households and thousands of hectares of farmland are under water. The most affected regions are the south, southwest and central parts of the country, for which yellow, orange and even red-code alerts have been issued. Weather experts warn that rains will continue until April 10th.