The minister of justice said the assessment commission for choosing candidates for the posts of member of the Superior Council of Magistracy and the Superior Council of Prosecutors will start work by the end of April. Sergiu Litvinenco noted that 28 candidates already applied for SCM member, while 19 candidates aspire to the post of SCP member. The pre-vetting of candidates for the two self-managing bodies is a first step towards an authentic reform, IPN reports.
On Monday, Parliament named the six members of the independent commission for assessing the integrity of candidates for the posts of member of the SCM and SCP. These are: Nadejda Hriptievschi, Tatiana Răducanu, Vitalie Miron, named at the suggestion of the parliamentary groups, and Victoria Henley, Nona Tsotoria, Herman Von Hebel, named at the suggestion of the development partners. The minister of justice said the last technical details are now being considered and the assessment commission will start work soon.
“I’m glad that the PAS parliamentary group designated upright, courageous persons who will abide by the same principles in their assessment work. We stick to the plan and I think the commission will start to assess the candidates this April. The goal of pre-vetting is to make sure that the Superior Council of Magistracy and the Superior Council of Prosecutors include persons who meet the requirements of integrity, honesty, correctness, supremacy of the public interest,” Sergiu Litvinenco stated in the talk show “Emphasis on Today” on TVR Moldova channel.
He noted that when the members of the two bodies are chosen, the “big cleanup” in the justice sector will start. Within the justice sector reform, the judges and prosecutors from the system will be assessed based on such criteria as integrity and professionalism.
“We have 28 candidates for SCM member and 19 candidates for SCP member. There are candidates who also applied for posts in the boards managed by the SCM and SCP. I trust the pre-vetting commission will work efficiently. This is the first systemic reform. The vetting will last longer. We cannot make mistake within the pre-vetting. If we act incorrectly here, we will transmit a bad signal to the honest people of the system as, if someone with integrity problems enters the General Assembly and is elected, the honest judges will be demoralized,” said Sergiu Litvinenco.
In accordance with the law, the independent commission for assessing the integrity of candidates for posts of member of the self-managing bodies of judges and prosecutors consists of six members. Three are citizens of the Republic of Moldova designated at the suggestion of the parliamentary groups by observing the proportional representation of the majority and the opposition, being confirmed by the votes of 3/5 of the elected MPs. Another three members are named at the suggestion of the development partners, being confirmed by the votes of 3/5 of the elected MPs.
