Opposition political party accuses authorities of misappropriating budgetary funds

The Social Democracy Party (PDS) seeks to hold answerable the Power’s representatives for misappropriating budgetary funds, and those who, claiming the stringent necessity to reconstruct monuments and streets “under the patronage of President Voronin”, embezzled budgetary resources, a press release of the party says. According to the cited source, Moldova has been officially recognised as the poorest country in Europe. While the authorities claim that there is no money for medicine, for schools’ renovation, for creation of new workplaces, they launch “grandiose projects” that enrich those that are governing and their protectors. According to the press release, the reconstruction of the Memorial “Eternity” cost 27 mln lei, based on official data, but in reality 57 mln lei were paid from the budget. Ninety million lei were spent from the budget to renovate Pan Halippa Street in Chisinau, though only 34 mln were officially reported. There were used 30,000 lei more than reported to reconstruct the building of the Court of Appeals, while the reconstruction of the Supreme Court of Justice exceeded the estimates by 700,000 lei. The renovation of the square of the National Opera House cost the budget about 2 mln lei in excess, while for the renovation of the monument of Stefan cel Mare there have been spent by over 150,000 more than the necessary. PDS asserts that the Power’s representatives themselves were forced to recognise these embezzlement, but no representative of the central or municipal authorities, who are to blame for misappropriation of public money, were not held answerable. As a reward, former interim mayor Vasile Ursu was appointed as Minister of Transports and Road Administration, while Veaceslav Iordan, person in charge for constructions in Chisinau City Hall, was designated as general interim mayor. PDS urges the Communist Party and its allies, PPCD and PDM, to reveal the names of the guilty persons, and to return to Moldovan people the stolen money in order to use them for social projects and necessities.