Parliament could exclude certain categories of officials banned from holding dual nationality

Certain categories of civil servants that are banned from holding dual nationality by the legislative amendments introduced late last year could be excluded from the list as President Vladimir Voronin asked the Parliament to re-examine the given bill, Info-Prim Neo reports. Vladimir Turcan, chairman of the legal commission for appointments and immunities, told the reporters that the bill will be reviewed in the near future. According to him, special attention will be paid to the list of persons to which the law applies. Turcan said that the restriction should be maintained for MPs, the President, members of the Government, employees of the Security and Information Service, managers from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Prosecutor General’s Office. Vladimir Voronin demands that the restrictions be fixed according to the European standards and the democratic norms. Under the law adopted by the vote of the Communist MPs on December 7, 2007, the holders of dual citizenship will not be able to hold the following posts: President of Moldova, member of the Government, Member of Parliament, district chairman, mayor, police officer, member of the Central Election Commission, of the Audit Office, judge, including at the Constitutional Court, member of the Board of the National Bank, ombudsman, customs officer, and others. The law says that the holders of dual citizenship occupying by appointment one of the posts mentioned by the law shall be deemed incompatible with the respective office only if they do not produce evidence that they have initiated, in a six-month period, procedures for relinquishing the citizenship of a foreign state. Elected officials shall be deemed incompatible only if they have taken office after the entry into force of the law. In addition, the candidates for elective offices holding dual citizenship shall prove intent to relinquish the second citizenship.