Octavian Armașu was appointed as governor of the National Bank of Moldova as of November 30 this year following the resignation of Sergiu Cioclea. Parliament voted unanimously to name the minister of finance as governor in its November 29 sitting, IPN reports.

Answering MPs‘ questions in Parliament, Octavian Armașu said he knows what the priorities and main challenges in the field are and this will help him take over swiftly and efficiently. He applauded the reforms done by his predecessor, which ensured a solid basis for continuing the reform agenda. Among the challenges, Armașu mentioned the optimization of the monetary policy and facilitation of access to loans. He noted the problems can be overcome, including with the assistance of the development partners.

Liberal-Democratic MP Maria Ciobanu said the appointment of Octavian Armașu as governor is not surprising as it is hard to find a person who would be more loyal to the government, while her colleague Iurie Țap stated the appointment and resignation of the governor cannot and should not be overlooked as the governor is one of the signatories of the memorandum between the EU and Moldova, which specifies the conditions that Moldova should meet, and is also responsible for the recovery of the embellished banking funds. Furthermore, the governor should understand all the problems in the field and should  be an independent authority who will serve the interests of the state. Octavian Armașu does not have the moral right to hold the post of governor.

Immediately after Octavian Armașu was proposed for National Bank governor, the leader of the Liberal Party Mihai Ghimpu said this post is very important for the leader of the Democratic Party Vlad Plahotniuc and an untested person will not be named to this.

The Communist and Socialist MPs left the sitting shortly after this started and didn’t take part in the vote.

Octavian Armașu will serve as governor of the National Bank of Moldova during  seven years.