Political class is responsible for non-functionality of NAC and NIC, statement

A group of NGOs say that the whole political class represented by the ruling parties, the opposition and the unaffiliated MPs is responsible for the delay in naming the heads of the National Anticorruption Center (NAC) and the National Integrity Commission (NIC), Info-Prim Neo reports. “The Liberal Party claims the chairmanship of the NIC as it pursues certain political and departmental interests. Some of the political groups and factions in Parliament impose conditions for voting in the head of the NAC. It is a situation when the political class seriously influences the independence of the NAC and NIC and politicizes them in an inadmissible manner,” the NGOs say in a statement. According to the NGOs, the NAC has been prevented from performing its operative and investigative activities centering on corruption-related offenses from October 1. “Society probably lost tens if not thousands of cases relating to acts of corruption. The direct costs (working days) amount to over 0.2 million lei, while the indirect costs (passive corruption) can go up to tens of millions of lei,” reads the statement. The NGOs say that the inaction fuels costs and adverse effects on society. The scale of the corruption danger can no longer be tolerated. In such circumstances, the politicians who promote the European integration agenda become ridiculous and lose their integrity and legitimacy. Civil society considers that the legislative body in its first sitting should put forward its candidate for the post of head of the NIC and vote in the selected director of the NAC. The NGOs demand that the Prosecutor’s Office order the investigation of possible situations of political influence and interference in the work of the NIC and NAC. The statement was signed by the Resource Center for Human Rights, the Institute for Human Rights, the Journalistic Investigations Center, and the Association for Participatory Democracy ADEPT. The legislature named the members of the NIC in June, but has not yet designated its head. The candidate for the post of NAC head Viorel Chetraru was selected by contest in September, but Parliament hasn’t yet confirmed him in the post.