There is no public methodology or a set of criteria to enable a clear assessment of legitimate versus unwarranted use of administrative resources, and whether a public asset is used to create a competitive advantage. In the absence of a professional methodology, it is complicated to make educated and expert conclusions. This is the opinion of Sergiu Ostaf, director of the Human Rights Resource Center (CReDO).
Sergiu Ostaf told a press conference that the CReDO experts are monitoring the election campaign for the February 24th parliamentary elections with the help of scientific tools. It involves an analysis to measure the free and fair nature of the electoral campaign. “This research is a small effort, with our contribution, to raise the monitoring standards and contribute to a better understanding of the quality of the electoral process and the electoral campaign,” noted Sergiu Ostaf. The research has several components: voter behavior, use of administrative resources, media behavior, and public finances.
On another subject, Sergiu Ostaf said that the procedure of government officials taking leaves of absence when running in elections must be clearly regulated. For example, under the current legislation, state secretaries are allowed to suspend their work during the campaign, despite their job being to ensure the continuity of public actions. In Ostaf's opinion, this should be disallowed.
The Human Rights Resource Center will publish its consolidated final report a few days after the election.
