IPN Interview with the Speaker of Parliament Andrian Candu on the occasion of 26 years of Moldova’s Independence.
– Moldova is celebrating the 26th anniversary of Independence in a few days. How do you define this period? What are its meanings for the citizen Andrian Candu, for your family, for all the people in this country?
– Twenty-six years ago we lived together an extraordinary sentiment of pride and freedom. Those feelings of euphoria and patriotism have faded during the difficult years of state-building. Today, through our policies, we follow the aspirations of two decades ago to live in dignity in a country that we can be proud of. This is an occasion for us to remember the reasons why we fought for independence and we are going to explain them trenchantly to whoever tries to impose its own rules on us. We have tolerated this humiliation for far too long, from our own governments and from foreign governments as well. As a citizen, I felt this humiliation too, but I don’t want to experience it anymore myself, and I don’t want my parents, or my children or my compatriots to experience it either. As a state official, I have always tried to do everything legally possible to prevent people from having the feeling that they or their families don’t matter, that their country doesn’t matter.
– Do you think Moldova is now there where it headed for, and if not, why?
– But where is Moldova headed really? If we all knew the answer to this question twenty-six years ago, if we asked the question in the first place, maybe we would have had a different situation today. Instead we’ve let ourselves carried adrift by how developments dictated. Only in 2014 when we signed the Association Agreement with the European Union have we finally answered the question where we are headed. Now it’s a lot of work to do, a lot of elbow grease for everybody, to reach the European Union.
– Which is Moldova’s greatest chance to succeed as a nation? Can integration into the European Union be considered such a chance, and if yes, do you think this course is irreversible despite the steady numbers of Eurosceptics?
– We will succeed as a state and society only if we start believing in ourselves and in our own country. The European Union is our model of development. We want the same well-being, security, freedom and prosperity as in Europe. Moreover, we want to be, and I’m sure we can be, part of the EU. For this to happen sooner, we need to continue to work at least as intense as over the past two years. Also, we need to understand that freedom of expression involves responsibility; that tolerance means accepting other views even if you don’t like them; that your rights cannot be above other people’s rights; that if you want better education and health care you need to pay your taxes at the very least, and there are more other things that we need to learn together along this European integration course. So, apart from the major legislative, normative, standard-related changes, while our manner of living is close to the European one, there are some attitudes that we need to adjust. These adjustments are sometimes painful and they add to the numbers of Eurosceptics. However, history knows no examples of a nation choosing to shift down to an inferior civilization model. So, yes, I’m sure about the irreversibility of Moldova’s European integration course.
– What do you think the authorities should do to prevent a derailment of the European course? Is the current government able to keep it on track?
– The current government will not allow such a derailment. Moreover, once our adopted policies have been fully implemented, the number of those wanting a different course of development will be very small. People have already seen that we deliver on our promises. If you don’t believe a politician, believe me as a father of three children who are being brought up here – Moldova is changing and it will continue to change until it becomes as we want it, a country everyone wants to live in.
Perhaps for the first time in Moldova’s history, this government has a clear vision of how this country should look like. All the reforms and decisions in the last two years have had a single goal – to transform our country into a friendly, inclusive state that offers opportunities to each and every citizen. We started with justice, because if law is enforced selectively, there’s no growth for the country and it’s impossible to guarantee people’s security. We have made a big leap in fighting corruption by erasing the lines between petty corruption and grand corruption. Further, we have removed the rules and excessive inspections that encouraged bribery and illegitimate conduct in the relationship between bureaucrats and businesses. We have given independence to prosecutors and judges, which has led to a number of high-profile investigations, the sentencing of a former prime minister and criminal charges against ministers and other dignitaries from the current and past governments. We have improved banking security by adopting a package of laws that blocked a major source of illicit profits for many politicians and so-called entrepreneurs. We have initiated a public administration reform, because Moldova needs an effective administrative system. We have introduced the practice of close cooperation between the executive and the legislative, making our intentions and plans public and predictable for the people. We will further focus on increasing living standards. We have created a base enabling starting of new businesses and developing of existing ones in advantageous conditions, because we need well paying jobs. We have a systemic approach to everything, because the changes that we make don’t just follow the immediate objective of improving the situation, but aim to achieve growth for many decades ahead.
– However, even after twenty-six years, Moldovan society remains divided along many lines. When and how can this be overcome, if at all?
– Divisions do exist within our society and it is a good thing that we have acknowledged this. Exactly for this purpose we created a number of inter-institutional platforms in Parliament to cooperate and coordinate, among other, with the Gagauz People’s Assembly, the Transnistria settlement stakeholders, civil society and so on. By communicating, we get to know ourselves better, gradually alleviating whatever separates us.
– How do you think the 27th, the 28th or the 29th Independence anniversary will differ from the current one?
– I think that in two-three as well as in ten years Moldova will celebrate Independence Day by remembering the values and personalities that helped us resist until we achieved sovereignty. I think that with each year we will be more prosper and prouder of our country. We will learn to respect ourselves more and will teach the others to do so.
If the elected authorities are not capable of ensuring prosperity and security for people, they get replaced. This is what happened every time since independence and this surely will continue to be the rule in the future.
– What do you thing are the most important symbols of Independence?
– To me, the main symbol of independence are the people, those who took to the Great National Assembly Square twenty-six years ago with one aspiration in mind – freedom. People are the greatest asset of Moldova and, for some time, of the government too. Regretfully, the past state-building efforts had little respect for the people. This explains the multiple failures. The current government is changing the paradigm of state administration. Through our reforms, the state institutions are there to serve the citizen, and not the other way around. To me, it’s the people who define Independence, regardless of their ethnic belonging, language, confession or social status. Moldova means everyone who lives here in dignity and believes in this country despite all hardship.
– There have been a lot of major political developments lately. How do you think Parliament will look like after the 2018 election?
– I think that after this election no one will be able to speculate about the representativeness and legitimacy of the legislative. Parliament is a political arena, and the change that we’ve made to our electoral system will allow new people to enter politics. Even though it’s a mixed system, the monopoly of party leaders has been broken. I think we have offered an extra opportunity for a fundamental right to be exercised: the right to be elected. Moreover, voters will have more options to elect a person and a party that truly represent them. I and the Democratic Party believe in people and in their ability to make the right choice.
– Please evaluate the domestic and external effects of the decision to adopt the mixed voting system from the angle of Independence’s goals.
– From this angle, we can as well evaluate the effects of adopting the Law on Prosecutorial Service, the Integrity Package, or the pensions system reform. This is essentially the same thing and the impact is huge for every piece of law I mentioned above. When some politicians exaggerate and play absurd games, I can understand their personal motivation, but I will not give them the satisfaction of joining their petty games. If I did it, I would fall into the trap of our political opponents who falsely speculate that the political system has been changed through amending the Election Code. When in fact, the Declaration of Independence itself, the law that gave us everything from the name of the Republic of Moldova, to the state symbols, to the foundations of democracy and the multi-party system, was adopted by a parliament that was elected in uninominal circumscriptions. Let me remind you that the proportional electoral system was a temporary measure chosen in an exceptional situation, but which turned into a permanent one due to political games. Elections will continue to be free and fair, and people will be able to elect and be elected. People will further be able to freely express themselves. Despite the political nearsightedness of some, Moldova remains to be a democratic state, and we the citizens remain to be free people, free to administrate our country and destiny according to our own choices and aspirations.
