Romanian Interior Ministry’s 2014 Report

The Romanian Ministry of the Interior has recently presented its 2014 report.

Corina Cristea, 24.03.2015, 15:02

Romania is a safe country; criminality has been curbed significantly, and the rate of street crime has reached the lowest value of the past years, reads the Romanian Interior Ministry’s 2014 report, presented early this week by Interior Minister, Gabriel Oprea. The number of crimes committed in rural areas has also dropped, said Gabriel Oprea, according to whom the most important resources of the ministry is represented by its staff.

Gabriel Oprea: “We all know that, in order to achieve performance, you need skilled people, who are motivated and properly rewarded for their activity, that is why, one of my priorities last year was to take measures for the proper rewarding of the ministry’s employees. Therefore, at ministry level we implemented a framework based on fundamental principles such as observing the law, protecting the citizens, observing the rights of the employees and also promoting the rule of law.”

One of the priorities that the Romanian Interior Ministry has set for the coming period is ensuring proper border control and cyber security. Against the background of the recent international developments, the Interior Ministry has drafted a new public safety strategy for the next five years, Minister Gabriel Oprea has also announced.

Attending for the first time the presentation of the Interior Ministry’s report, president Klaus Iohannis called on the police officers to act as role models of conduct and honesty, pleading for an increased presence of police officers among citizens.

President Klaus Iohannis: “I think the police should focus more on prevention. Gendarme forces should carry out more activities aimed at ensuring citizens’ security and should focus less on guarding certain facilities.”

However, the head of the National Anti-Corruption Directorate, Laura Codruta Kovesi, has warned that there are several vulnerable points with regard to the activity of the Romanian Interior Ministry. She has referred to the larger number of police officers in leading positions that are currently being prosecuted and has also warned about the relations that some police officers have with business people and politicians:

Laura Codruta Kovesi: “One of the weak points is the recovery of damage. Last year, the National Anti-Corruption Directorate froze over 330 million Euro worth of goods. Another weak point, which characterizes the judiciary as a whole, is represented by the connections between employees of the Interior Ministry and local politicians or business people.”

Transport Minister Ioan Rus, a former Minister of the Interior, does not believe that those connections make the ministry more vulnerable and has stated that the fight against corruption and theft should be a joint effort.