7 September, 2015
News and Current Affairs
Corina Cristea, 07.09.2015, 11:59
Prosecutors with the higher court in Bucharest have placed under preventive detention the mayor of Bucharest, Sorin Oprescu, under charges of bribery. Several of his subordinates and associates have also been detained for questioning in this same case. His arrest did not come as a surprise to commentators, who had pointed out that over the last few months a number of public servants ranking high in City Hall had been convicted of corruption. Find out more after the news.
Romanian PM Victor Ponta and Finance Minister Eugen Teodorovici submit today a bill in the lower chamber of the Romanian Parliament to reform public procurement. The head of the government claims such a reform is necessary because the present regulations cause unspent moneys to accrue without the possibility of being spent. At the same time, Chamber of Deputies chairman Valeriu Zgonea is set to present the principles for absentee voting. He is in favor of the speedy passing of a bill to provide the necessary resources for the ballot to be fair and guarantee Romanians living abroad the proper exercise of this fundamental right.
World nr. 2 in womens tennis, Simona Halep of Romania, plays in the eighth finals of the last Grand Slam this year, the US Open, against Sabine Lisicki of Germany, ranked 24th. The Romanian player leads 3-1. She will also play in the quarter finals of the mixed doubles, joining another Romanian star, Horia Tecau. The two will face off against the fourth favorite pair, Martina Hingis of Switzerland and Leander Paes of India. Tecau will also join his long time partner in the doubles, Jean-Julien Rojer, against the US pair Eric Butorac/ Scott Lipsky.
The George Enescu International Festival continues in Bucharest. Performing today is the San Francisco Symphony, directed by Michael Tilson Thomas, part of the Great World Orchestras cycle. The Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen conducted by Trevor Pinnock plays as part of the Chamber Recital cycle. Through 20th of September, over 3,000 Romanian and foreign artists take part in the most prestigious music event in the country. This edition also features the London Symphony Orchestra, under Romanian conductor Ion Marins baton.
A strategic inter-agency exercise, Histria 15, run by the Ministry of Defense will run for two weeks starting today in south eastern Romania, involving around 7,000 personnel from the ministries of defense, interior, justice, transportation, public finance, economy, health and information society, joined by employees of all the intelligence services. This is the largest such exercise ever run in Romania, aiming to prepare for organizing and executing a wide array of missions.
Tens of thousands of protesters have set up tents in the center of Chisinau, the capital of the Republic of Moldova, after Sundays widespread marches. They call for President Nicolae Timofti to step down, claiming he represents the interests of elites and does not act against corruption. In early April, Moldovas central bank announced it discovered that three institutions accounting for about a third of the countrys banking assets have granted loans worth about 15% of the GDP to undisclosed parties. Protesters also call for the removal of immunity for elected officials in order to facilitate prosecution.
Romanian Minister of Agriculture Daniel Constantin request on Monday from European officials emergency support solutions for farmers in Romania hit by the drought, as well as for farmers hit by the dairy crisis. He attends in Brussels the meeting of the European Council for Agriculture and Fishing. The debates, chaired by Luxembourg, focus on hardships in farming across Europe. Talks will also be held at the level of commissions to identify concrete means of applying solutions.
