Romania’s Anti-Corruption Directorate Presents Activity Report for 2015
The National Anti-Corruption Directorate, that enjoys the highest confidence ratings among Romanians, presented on Thursday its impressive activity report for 2015.
Bogdan Matei, 26.02.2016, 13:53
The campaign against high-level corruption in Romania is believed to have already started to overshadow the Italian prosecutors’ famous operation “Clean Hands” that swept through Italys political system in the early 1990s rooting out dirty politicians and businessmen.
Due to the National Anti-Corruption Directorate (DNA), the spearhead of the anti-corruption campaign in Romania, 2015 saw a number of premieres for the Romanian justice system. The investigation and prosecution of a serving Prime Minister, the Social Democrat Victor Ponta, the arrest of a Constitutional Court judge, Toni Grebla, and of the Bucharest mayor, Sorin Oprescu, are the DNA’s most notable victories last year.
Also last year, the DNA requested the approval for the arrest of the then finance minister, Darius Valcov. 2015 was also the year when three of Bucharest’s six district mayors were detained and twenty current and former MPs, fourteen county town mayors, nine county council presidents and one prefect were put on trial. Whether we talk about right –wing and left-wing politicians, from power and opposition, from the capital Bucharest or from other parts of Romania, corruption seems to have contaminated the entire political spectrum.
According to a DNA release, the conviction rate of the people prosecuted is 90%, which proves the quality of proofs that criminal cases are built on, and the prosecutors’ professionalism. DNA chief, Laura Codruta Kovesi, has also said that following the Courts’ final rulings last year, the state has to retrieve almost 200 million euros. Kovesi emphasised once more the importance of fully enforcing judicial decisions by also recovering losses.
Laura Codruta Kovesi: “The judiciary is making huge efforts to investigate and punish corruption cases by using the society’s financial resources. On the other hand, some of the people convicted, do not serve the sentence fully as they are released on parole without the losses being recovered or they use loopholes in administration. Such situations only lead to losing the state’s authority and an acute lack of trust in the state institutions.”
Attending the presentation of the DNA’s activity report, President Klaus Iohannis said that the battle against corruption must continue at full tilt in Romania. Iohannis criticised Parliament’s attitude towards its members who broke the law and warned that their immunity should not obstruct justice.
In his turn, PM Dacian Ciolos said that a joint commitment of Parliament, Government and the Judiciary was needed in order to reinstate trust in the state institutions. The Unites States Ambassador to Romania, Hans Klemm, has hailed the country’s progress in fighting corruption.
(Translated by Elena Enache)
