The parliamentary elections held in the Republic of Moldova on February 24 were conducted fairly and no major violations that can influence the election outcome were recorded. Even if technical faults existed, these can be removed until the next elections, said representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organization (PABSEC) who oversaw the elections.
In a news conference at IPN, PABSEC Secretary General Asaf Hajiyev said the turnout at some of the polling stations was high and the people really had to wait to be able to vote. At other polling places, the turnout was rather low. This is a phenomenon that is met in other states too, but this is authentic democracy. “I think yesterday’s elections can be described as a step towards democracy. Our observations show that access to participation in elections was ensured for all the parties and all the players involved. At polling stations, we saw both young people and elderly people and this is gladdening as the people could express their wish,” stated Asaf Hajiyev.
PABSEC Vice-President Petar Kanev, the head of Bulgarian’s delegation to the PABSEC, said the observers travelled to a number of polling stations in the municipality of Chisinau that were chosen randomly. Problems and shortcomings have always existed in the electoral process because this involves a lot of people. The fact that the parliamentary elections in Moldova were monitored by about 3,000 observers points to Europe’s increased interest in the processes that take place in the Republic of Moldova.
Ramaz Nikolaishvili, a member of Georgia’s delegation to the PABSEC, said last Sunday was an important day for the Republic of Moldova, when the people elected their MPs who will govern this state during the next four years. In this connection, it was very important for each citizen to be able to give their vote to whom they consider necessary. “We can say that the citizens‘ right to vote at these elections was ensured and the electors could vote whom they wanted. It is curious for us too to see what follows. We would like those who were elected to make sure the country follows a path to development,” stated Ramaz Nikolaishvili.
As to recommendations, the PABSEC observers said the video surveillance cameras installed at these elections above ballot boxes should fully cover the image of the person who votes, not only the hands, so as to ensure greater security. Asked if they received signals about the organized transportation of voters to polling places, the observers said they didn’t see something like these at the polling stations they visited, but do not rule out the possibility that something like this happened in other localities and the responsible bodies should examine the cases and come with a decision later.
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organization includes 12 countries, three of which are EU member states. The observers will present a detailed report with all the mission’s conclusions.
