The authorities already satisfied the demands formulated by farmers, but the farmers have the right to protest, said Minister of Agriculture Vladimir Bolea. According to him, the authorities help the farmers affected by this year’s severe drought by allowing them to pay the required taxes by November 25. A relevant derogation from the law is to be approved by the Commission for Exceptional Situations (CES). The famers will also not be penalized by the Tax Inspectorate or banks if they delay the payments but it goes only to the debts accumulated due to this year’s drought, not yet to historical debts, IPN reports.
On Tuesday, the administration boards of the National Farmers’ Federation and the Association “Force of Farmers” decided to mount a protest on September 20 by taking the agricultural machines out on the street. According to the farmers, the authorities didn’t satisfy their three main demands: to reschedule the repayment of their debts, to provide tax concessions to them, and to persuade foreign partners to offer funds for subsidizing the farmers affected by drought.
“All their demands have been actually satisfied. We have 6,500 business entities operating on this segment and everyone is important for me. We took the decision, and the CES will endorse it, for the taxes that need to be paid by farmers to be deferred until November 25. As to the penalties imposed on them due to overdue payments, this issue was resolved with the Tax Inspectorate and the Ministry of Finance. It is their right to protest. Their reason is that they have bank loans and want these and their debts to companies that sell inputs to them to be rescheduled. They also want the Tax Inspectorate not to impose penalties on them and they want not to pay taxes. The Tax Inspectorate will not impose penalties on anyone, but one should go and talk to them. You, as a business entity, take your map and go and talk to these people, to the bank, to the Tax Inspectorate,” Vladimir Bolea stated in the program “Freedom with Dorin Galben” on TV8 channel.
According to the minister, the concessions provided to farmers apply only to the debts accumulated this year, not yet to the historical debts.
“We speak about debts accumulated owing to the situation in 2022, not to historical debts that are 100 years old. The old debts need to be repaid on time. One must show respect for the people who make money. Many of those who import these fertilizers are famers and they also own thousands of hectares of land. We must respect each other. We cannot treat one as important and ignore all the others,” explained the minister.
According to representatives of the National Farmers’ Federation and the Association “Force of Farmers”, the protest set for September 20 will be economic in character and will not be politicized. The protest organizers said they will not allow political organizations to use farmers’ dissatisfaction to promote their political interests.
