The concession of the Chisinau International Airport, privatization of Air-Moldova and Tutun CTC and the contract for the modernization of the state-owned enterprise “Bus Stations and Terminals” will be examined the first by the parliamentary commission of inquiry into the privatization and concession of public property in 2013-2019. The commission took such a decision on July 2 and next week is to choose other contracts for the sale of public property for verification, IPN reports.

After the meeting that was held behind closed doors, the commission’s chairman Igor Munteanu told the press that the four companies were selected taking into account their relevance and the privatization and concession processes with negative resonance in society. The state’s shareholding that was important when the privatization took place and the economic and financial situation of these enterprises were also among the considered criteria. The commission of inquiry does not yet substitute the prosecution bodies and will only facilitate an assessment of the legality of the privatization and concession of these enterprises.

The MP said they approved the specification for the purchase of consultancy services. The consultants will help the commission to assess the contracts, the implementation of contract clauses and the concession process.

The commission is to present a final report in Parliament after 120 days of its constitution. The amount of work is considerable and they are to ultimately determine if the authorities responsible for privatization and concession fulfilled their duties.

Socialist MP Vlad Batrîncea said the concession of the airport will be a priority. He proposed questioning his parliamentary group mate Oleg Lipskii, who formed part of the previous commission of inquiry that probed the concession of the airport. Then, Oleg Lipskii presented an alternative report, revealing a number of violations committed in the concession process.

According to the Socialist MP, those who initiated the sale of AirMoldova artificially created a deplorable financial situation at the airline so as to sell it at a smaller price, as in the case of Tutun CTC. The list of enterprises that will be assessed by the commission will be extended.