Appointment of Heads prosecutors "must be right"

European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso pointed out Monday at the meeting in Brussels with Prime Minister Victor Ponta, "the need for Romania to remove any doubt about the commitment to the rule of law," the judicial independence and respecting the decisions of the Constitutional Court, but also the importance of future senior appointments for the General Prosecutor and DNA to be made in a "fair and transparent" modality, it is said in a statement of the European Commission.

"President Barroso expressed at the meeting with Prime Minister Victor Ponta the same concerns as those sent last week to President Traian Basescu on the need for Romania to eliminate any doubt about the commitment to the rule of law, independence of the judiciary and respect for the Constitution ", it is shown in the press release sent after the meeting with the two leaders.

EU executive chief said that all political forces in Romania – from the government and opposition - must act with responsibility and restraint and strong focus attention on the urgent need to restore the institutional and political stability.

"This is particularly important in the context of parliamentary elections this fall", said the press office of the President of the EC.

EC President said he would be extremely important that key appointments for the positions of General Attorney and chief prosecutor of the National Anticorruption to be made "fairly and transparently".

"The government, both before and after elections, should avoid appointing ministers with clear decisions against their integrity," warned Jose Manuel Barroso.

He recalled that Brussels will adopt a new report by the end of the year, "in order to assess if all its concerns were resolved" and if has been restored the democratic mechanism of balance and control.

The document also notes that "President Barroso and Prime Ponta discussed also about the absorption of EU funds in Romania".

"Although in the last year there were recorded major efforts, the absorption capacity remains extremely low and Romania risks losing significant funds that could have a major beneficial impact on citizens and companies in Romania," informs the release.

President Barroso requested Ponta government at the same time to "take immediate steps to improve the administrative capacity and procurement regulations."

Internal disputes "should not affect interests in the EU"

Prime Minister Victor Ponta said after the meeting with EC President that he told him the vote expressed in the referendum for dismissal of President Traian Basescu cannot be ignored, but at the same time showing that internal political disputes should not occur at EU level, noted Mediafax.

"Obviously, we discussed once again that 8.5 million Romanian that vote cannot be ignored, and here things are very clear. At the same time, I repeat what I also said at home: Romania has no other way than the European way and we, along with Brussels, the European Commission, do not translate our wars from the inside.

"Neither I like those who come here in Brussels or Strasbourg and accuse, hoping it would help at home, nor I think we need to have wars with the European Commission for our domestic political wars," said Ponta.

The prime minister said that Jose Manuel Barroso welcomed the fact that the 11 points made ​​by the Romanian side in discussions with the European Commission representatives this summer were treated by the government in the most serious way and accomplished.

"It is obvious that further the thing we want to show is that we can think of the common national projects and that we can lead the domestic political battle so that our interests as a country in the European Union not to be affected," said Ponta.

He added that it is necessary that the level of European funds absorption by Romania to grow, so that the available funds not to be lost.

Translated by Alexandra-Diana Mircea
MTTLC, Bucharest University