Independent Press Association, Anti-Corruption Alliance launch 'Interests in Sight' Campaign

The Independent Press Association (API) and the Anti-corruption Alliance are launching a new media campaign aimed at making office-holders reveal their personal interests. API head Petru Macovei told a press conference on Wednesday, July 6, that the “Interests in Sight” is a follow-up to the “Property in Sight” campaign, which was held during several years, Info-Prim Neo reports. “Today we launch the “Interests in Sights” campaign” because now we have the Law on declaring personal interests, and the issue concerning this law is worse than the one regarding the Law on income declaration”, said Macovei. Petru Macovei stated that initially, office-holders would be monitored to find out whether they respected the law, and if they submitted personal interest declarations. Later, API will check the correctness of the documents and will publish the results. Within a few days, persons concerned by this law will receive letters from API, requesting to fill in a personal interest declaration developed by this project. Cristina Cojocaru, Secretary of the Anti-Corruption Alliance, said that this declaration comprised information not only about the office holder himself, but about his spouse and relatives up to the third level – parents, sisters, brothers, grandparents, nephews, nieces, aunts etc. The declarations will be updated yearly until January 30. According to Cristina Cojocaru, the Law on personal interest declaration was approved to please the international community and it wasn’t applied until now. One of the reasons is the lack of a declaration form that is to be filled in by office-holders, similar to income declaration. Another reason is the absence of a specialized body that would check these declarations. The Principal Ethics Commission, which, according to the law is empowered to verify the exactness of the declarations, hasn’t been formed yet. Also, both organizations urged citizens that know about conflicts of interests involving office-holders to report them by phone at 0 22 210602. The “Interests in Sights” campaigns is held as part of the “Supporting to the Anti-corruption Alliance Secretariat” Project. This project is made possible by the aid of the East-European Foundation, and funded by the Swedish Agency of Development and International Cooperation, and by the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Under the Law on personal interest declarations fall the persons holding offices in public authorities and independent regulatory authorities, persons empowered to manage goods owned by the state or territorial administrative units, including funds.