National Anti-Corruption Department hides Golden Blitz group

A few days ago the PSD (Social-Democrat Party) demanded the Prosecutor's Office publicly to release the criminal cases against PD (Democrat Party) leaders and businessmen in connection to the latter, cases hidden in some prosecutors' drawers. This public demand is also on the "Golden Blitz" group of interests, close to Romanian President Traian Basescu and now famous for how easy they grabbed the most profitable contracts on building national roads and highways. One of the bulkiest corruption cases deadlocked in the DNA (National Anti-Corruption Department) regards the "Golden Blitz" group.
ZIUA has reached the conclusions in the report by the National Control Agency on the auction held in the summer if 2006. By fake auction a contract of more than 200 million Euro got to the joint venture made up of SC Spedition UMB SRL , SC PA&CO International SRL, SC Euroconstruct Trading 98 SRL and Com-Axa SRL. President Basescu's good friends own the latter companies. (...)
Basescu's directions
"Take a careful look at the Romanian economic agents. Take a look at the great failures in Romanian infrastructure, whether it is about the Bucharest-Pitesti highway or about rebuilt national roads that failed. You will always find foreign general entrepreneurs and Romanian companies underneath", President Basescu was saying. He claimed the transport minister was to find a solution to consolidate Romanian economy agents by inviting them to proceed to joint and thus resist competition. "Call them and ask them to get associated so that they can participate in the substantial auctions to come. Give Romanian builders a chance !", he asked.
The directions were followed at once and the deadline for submitting offers together with the requirements for auction participants were changed so that the respective companies, which had never built a minimum of 40 kilometers of highway, could prove other accomplishments. It was the very "invention" the "Golden Blitz" group needed to join the competition. The President's friends established the joint venture Spedition UMB SRL (Dorinel Umbrarescu), PA & CO International SRL (Costel Casuneanu), Euroconstruct Trading '98 SRL (Dan Besciu and Sorin Serban Vulpescu), COM-AXA SRL (Dorinel Umbraescu). They won the action in spite of offering an unbelievably small price of 199, 97 million Euro. Experts say it is about 25-30 million Euro smaller than the real one. They were therefore relying on a future raise of the price by additional documents so that the losses would be covered for and profit would be attractive.

Razvan Savaliuc
Ziua Miercuri 15 August 2007 http://www.ziua.net/english

Classified abuse

Prosecutors, the intelligence services and the executive power make use of the aberrant Law 51/ 1991 on national security in order to coordinate criminal trials.
Prosecutors refuse to show judges authorizations for phone call interception by invoking the "secret of state". It is only the government who may declassify the interception, at the motivated request of the secret services invoking the secret. According to a decision reached by Bucharest Court of Appeal, "the court's access to it depends exclusively on the executive power thus interfering in the progress of a criminal trial, which is unacceptable and incompatible to the rule of law and the principle of separation of powers in state".
When facing actually illegal evidence, judges may dismiss it and thus get famous criminals away with it. This was the scenario used on the Camataru brothers. The Interior Ministry classified their intercepted phone calls.
Judges may also transfer cases to courts with magistrates having an ORNISS certificate, but in such case the principle of random distribution of criminal cases is disobeyed and suspicion on impartiality arises. The Bucharest Court of Appeal also mentions that "Romanian legislation on national security is not in keeping with the European Convention of Human Rights", just as it is interference in the use of the right to mail. (...)

Bogdan Galca
Ziua Miercuri 15 August 2007 http://www.ziua.net/english

PSD up to Basescu

Yesterday Mircea Geoana got unbound in the last minute and he announced the death sentence for the 2nd Tariceanu Cabinet by September 10, claiming the government's inefficiency was killing to national interest and that the government was to be blamed for Romanians' impossibility to enjoy the advantages of economy growth, a situation lasting seven years. According to the leader, the decision of the PSD (Social-Democrat Party) members was unanimous. In fact, the PSD has no longer a choice. Double language may soon prove suicide. What is next? Either Mircea Geoana proceeds to a bluff, under terrible pressure from the electorate and the PSD branches, which means the PSD MPs won't be doing their best to overthrow the government. Or the Parliament passes the bill against the government. In such case, the Liberal government is history. But this is how Geoana will be up to Basescu.
The truth is that the PSD leader is under assail by his own party because the PSD is losing electorate, at least this is what opinion polls are showing. But in order to get power again the PSD needs a minimum of 30% from the total of polls in the parliamentary elections. And the PSD will have to pass the local election test in order to get the 30%. Unless the Social-Democrats win local elections and have enough power in the territory early next year, it is hard to assume that the party will win the parliamentary elections due in the autumn of 2008.
And the election of MEPs in Romania is to take place in the meantime. Even if this is not decisive for the domestic political dispute, it is an important clue about various parties' force. The outcome of it may effect in advantage or psychological disadvantage and have consequences over the vulnerable electorate. The explanation to this bizarre phenomenon of a party in the opposition losing points instead of gaining points in the second term of the present electoral cycle ? It is the outcome of a dramatic process: the PSD has been in the opposition since December 2004, but it is perceived rather as an ally of the Tariceanu governments because of flirting with the Liberals. The PD (Democrat Party), until recently in alliance with the PNL (National Liberal Party), looks like a more authentic opposition party. It was the same even when the PD was in power. Traian Basescu is still perceived as leader of this party rather than a head of state. And his offensive against the Liberals has been ceaseless. This game played for the sake of the image costs the Social-Democrats votes. Since the Democrats have proclaimed themselves a right people's party overnight, the PSD, finally the only left party, may find it easy to win the electoral confrontations in 2008 and take over again. Unless so, the PSD will face disaster or the beginning of the end, especially that this party is keener than all the other parties together on the privileges of power.
Given these, the local PSD leaders have started greater and greater pressure on Mircea Geoana, forcing him into changing attitude, dropping double language and proceeding to real opposition. It can only effect in the overthrowing of the government. It is this top to bottom response on which depend the games for power at high level in the PSD. The central barons are relying on the repositioning of the main centres within the party, even for passing the political baton from one hand to the other.
Now, if the PSD is truly determined to overthrow the Tariceanu government, the party will pay a lot for the naivete of having trusted changing political partners when to dismiss Basescu was the issue at stake. And the PSD didn't mobilize their electorate to a great extent. Basescu may cease to be a president-spectator and tourist to Covasna and Harghita and turn into a president-player due to the very PSD, since it is only the head of state who may appoint a new PM.

Sorin Rosca Stanescu
Ziua Miercuri 15 August 2007 http://www.ziua.net/english