Chisinau mayor must remain apolitical, because, in the past, unfortunately, it was quite the opposite, and the parties represented by municipal administrators "looted this city", say some of the current candidates for the mayor's position. In their view, combating corruption and excessive bureaucracy at the municipal level should be a priority, as well as ensuring transparency. At the same time, some candidates believe that these elections are fraudulent, because there seems to be a tacit agreement between two candidates, who behave as if they had already won the race. The statements were made at the public debates "Only one of many: who and why?", organized by the IPN Press Agency.
Ivan Diacov, candidate of "Our Party", claims that he knows the real state of affairs at the City Hall and the problems faced by the municipality. He is aware of the issues related to the environment, roads, kindergartens, but also to the field of education in general. The electoral contender says that he comes to the City Hall to fight organized crime and to provide a better, honest and quiet life to Chisinau dwellers. According to him, in the last years we have all witnessed that "a mafia has built up a nest" in the City Hall, appropriating the public goods to its liking. In his opinion, "the elections are already fraudulent, because there is a tacit understanding between Ion Ceban (PSRM) and Andrei Năstase (ACUM Bloc)". The electoral contender also believes that the only chance is for the voter to "decide and do justice".
Dumitru Țîra, candidate of "European People's Party of Moldova", says he lives all his life in Chisinau, and the desire to run was dictated by all the worries that people face - damaged roads and sidewalks, dust, smell and others problems related to public transport, garbage disposal. In his opinion, the municipality of Chisinau is in a crisis situation and in these conditions another vision and approach is needed in all that means development. The electoral contender has also said that much has been discussed about the mayor's obligations and the role of the political element. "However, this position does not have to be politicized, even if, unfortunately, it has been so far, because the parties of previously elected mayors have stolen from this city through tenders, relatives and acquaintances who operated there," says Dumitru Țîra. According to him, these elections are a kind of farce, as two of the candidates behave as if they have already won the elections. In this context, he urges voters not to fear voting against those who do not represent them.
Alexandru Fetescu, candidate of the Liberal Democratic Party of Moldova, said that, like all Chisinau people, he faced the same problems - traffic jams in the morning and in the evening, the same damaged roads and broken sidewalks, etc. Like the others, he suffers from the excessive bureaucracy at municipal level. And within this vicious circle, the main link that must be eliminated, in his opinion, is the corruption at the City Hall, maintained by bureaucracy, which brought the institution to a state of malfunctioning. Together with his team, he comes with a political program and an action plan, which will be finalized with the participation of citizens. The main pillars of his program are the digitalized administration, clean parks, infrastructure that will connect people, urbanized suburbs, but also a highly developed culture in Chisinau. What he enjoys in this campaign, says the candidate, is that contenders' expenses are lower than in the previous campaigns. At the same time, it is not right that the electoral bodies do not register a contender who has collected ten thousand signatures. In his opinion, this constitutes a defiance of the rights of Chisinau dwellers to support an independent candidate.
Victor Chironda, candidate of "New Force" Social-Political Movement, has mentioned that, unlike the politicians who think about the city only during the election campaigns, he and his team have always taken care of it. But outside the City Hall, it is much more difficult to deal with problem solving, especially when the political and personal interests of the City Hall officials are above the citizens' interests. He says he comes with a team of young professionals, focusing on ensuring the quality of roads and sidewalks, pedestrian safety and traffic, aiming to fight the traffic jams, to organize parking places, kindergartens and education for all children. Victor Chironda has also said that he intends to ensure transparency both in the City Hall and in the Chisinau Municipal Council because its lack leads to failed projects and wasted investments.
The candidate of the Socialist Party Ion Ceban was also invited to the debates, but did not participate. On October 14, the first round of debates attended by Lilia Ranogaeț, candidate of the National Liberal Party, Vitalie Voznoi, candidate of "European Left" Political Party, Sergei Toma, candidate of “Working People” Political Party and the candidate of "National Unity Party" Octavian Țîcu took place. The next debates are scheduled for October 16.
The IPN news agency carries out a mini-cycle consisting of three electoral debates with the candidates for the position of general mayor of Chisinau municipality, which will confront each other on October 20, 2019. To ensure a maximum level of objectivity in forming the components of the three debates, but also to avoid the repetition of situations attested in other debates, when the same participants were invited on different sound stages, the IPN Agency resorted to a random arrangement mechanism (using the Random.org platform).
The debates "Only one from many: who and why?", with the participation of the candidates for the position of general mayor of Chisinau municipality, the second round, constitute the 119th edition of the cycle "Development of political culture in public debates", supported by the German Foundation Hanns Seidel.
