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TI: Romania risks becoming a trapped state in respects of corruption
Romania risks becoming a trapped state in respects of corruption, and although the anti-corruption agencies courageously investigate this area, they do it in a selective manner, that places their credibility under a question mark, said on Wednesday the Executive Director of Transparency International Romania (TI-Romania), Victor Alistar.
'The anti-corruption agencies and other structures in charge with ensuring the rule of law have been the target of constant pressure in order to determine them to depart from their mission, or to carry out their work in such a manner to also produce political effects, not only legal. The anti-corruption agencies carry out courageous investigations, but in a selective manner, which raises question marks about their credibility, most often the agenda of investigations being superimposed by a political agenda, and the developments in the political arena. During the reporting period there were often critics about protectionism exerted by the institutions of law enforcement, following their passive stance when faced with disclosure of some corruption cases, in the public opinion being accredited the idea that certain sectors of public life, or of the institutional architecture, are protected from criminal investigations ', said Alistar.
TI-Romania has launched on Wednesday the National Report on Corruption, a publication that presents a summary of the most important evolutions at institutional, legislative and public policy levels, with impact on the fight against corruption, in the period September 2009 to May 2011.
TI-Romania considers that transparency of decision-making in the drafting and adoption of laws, strategies, policies, organizational formulas has been nonexistent, in the absence of consultations and a prior assessment of their impact, which can make a policy initially well intended to have an unexpected negative effect.
TI Romania Director also showed that the third pillar, namely the civil society and mass-media, faced numerous abusive actions aimed at inhibiting them and at reducing the level of implication and of constructive criticism.
One of the conclusions of TI-Romania Report is that the period between September 2009-May 2011 was marked in Romania by the Government focusing its efforts on countering the economic crisis at 'any price and in any way ', in the shortest time as possible, without considering eventual consequences. Thus, citizens trust in in public institutions has been diminished alarmingly, with a direct and immediate consequence the depreciation of the whole climate of public integrity. A worsening of the signalled problems is otherwise felt in each of the measures and measure sets examined, the report also emphasized.