Documents on privatization of municipal radio and TV stations should be reviewed, former Chisinau councilor

Former municipal councilor Mihai Roscovan considers that it is absolutely necessary to reexamine the documents on the privatization of the municipal TV channel Euro TV and municipal radio station Antena C as it was illegal. Roscovan has told Info-Prim Neo that he and councilor Oleg Cernei at that meeting of the Chisinau Municipal Council (CMC) tried to oppose the auctioning of the municipal radio and TV stations. Mihai Roscovan said that it was a disaster organized by the councilors of the Communists Party and the Christian Democratic People’s Party in the CMC as they voted in favor of selling the two institutions by investment contest. Roscovan stated that he submitted a set of documents proving that the radio station and TV channel were privatized illegally to the present administration of the City Hall, but “it did not have courage and political will to try to return things to normality”. He added he is afraid that “the fragile majority in the new Parliament could also catch this syndrome of distrust in ones’ own forces”. Contacted by Info-Prim Neo, Mayor of Chisinau Dorin Chirtoaca said that the privatization of the municipal stations Antena C and Euro-TV will be obligatorily reviewed as the low price at which they were sold also points to its illegality. The new owners paid by only 1-2 million lei, but the equipment costs ten times more, Dorin Chirtoaca said. The mayor hopes for a return to normality, including by amending the Broadcasting Code and allowing the local public authorities to have by a radio station and/or a television channel so as to inform the people about their work. In April 2006, the then deputy speaker of Parliament Iurie Rosca announced publicly that the municipal stations Antena C and Euro TV would be privatized after the Broadcasting Code was adopted and made official assurances. After many months of attempts and ground explorations, in January 2007 the Communist and Christian-Democratic councilors sold Antena C to a private individual for 1.05 million lei. Euro TV Chisinau was purchased by another individual for 2 million lei. The embassies working in Moldova expressed their concern about the way in which the public broadcasters in Chisinau were reorganized. A number of media outlets also expressed their dissatisfaction. Employees of the two institutions appealed the decisions by the CMC and the then acting mayor Vasile Ursu to court, but did not obtain anything. The case is to be examined by the European Court of Human Rights.