Financial Press Review, February 11

The Ziarul Financiar discusses Sorin Blejnar’s, National Agency for Fiscal Administration President, statement that he had had information that some customs employees were allegedly involved in illegal activities (cigarette smuggling and others), but his job description doesn’t allow him to fire the customs officers in arrest.

Soria Blejnar showed that last year he asked for the ‘mobility’ of 698 customs officers, including 33 in power positions.

‘The President of NAFA, Sorin Blejnar, has the responsibility to directly name customs chiefs,’ the daily reads under the headline ‘Political leaders look for explanations from Boc and Ialomiţianu’.

The Bursa prints an article which reads that, during a press conference yesterday, Prime Minister Emil Boc threatened that any dignitary named by Government decision with a warranty on their name will be relieved of their position. (…) When asked if Sorin Blejnar would have signed in his resignation, the Prime Minister denied it,’ the Bursa reads.

The same daily prints an article about the President’s statement yesterday at our radio station that ‘it would be most humiliating if our country protected its borders with foreign customs officers’.

Under the headline ‘What plans does IMF have with Romania,’ the Ziarul Financiar reads that ‘the ninth agreement our country is going to sign with the IMF next month sets off on a rather vague agenda, less ambitious than the previous letters’. (…) Jeffrey Franks’ plans to evaluate and establish a strategy for 150 state companies are much more ambitious. The provisions from the letter published by Mediafax do not make reference to any such list,’ the daily reads.

‘Moreover, Franks said that the Government has six months to fulfill these demands, so it is going to be decided which companies will be closed because they are not economically viable’.

‘The fiscal policy for the next two years is still unclear, but there is the promise that ‘over night’ tax changes will be strictly controlled’. The letter also mentions that, in order to reach the 4 percent of the GDP target, Romania has to shut down 30 percent of the railway system or at least 1000 kilometers, abandoning this transportation alternative,’ the Ziarul Financiar reads.

The Curierul Naţional prints an article entitled ‘Agricultural Chambers turn into political chambers?’, according to which ‘Agrostar Federation threatens that almost 2 000 farmers will take the streets next weeks and they will organise protests for the first time in Brussels as a sign of criticism of the politicisation of the Agricultural Chambers’.

‘The Agricultural Chambers are farmers’ institutions. It looks like Romanian politicians have other interests than relaunching politics, namely to support evasion and imports and keep agriculture under political control’, the Curierul Naţional quotes Agrostar President Nicolae Ştefan

Translated by: Gabriela Lungu
MA Student, MTTLC, Bucharest University