National Press Review, 15 April

"A budget of a few billion euros and the next year local elections, this is what politicians are aimed at with the Bucharest referendum", according to the România Liberă.

The newspaper put into balance the losses and the gains of the Capital residents if they vote for an administrative reorganization.

Therefore, residents in Bucharest will have to decide whether sector mayors will continue to be elected by citizens, whether local councils of sectors will be closed and whether uninominal constituencies for general counsel will be organized.

Other than that, the City Hall has often been considered as an elevator to higher positions in the state, presidency included, reason for which parties have already started making plans for the local elections in 2012.

The Democratic Liberal Party (PDL) offers support to the reorganization project, considering that one of its initiators is the Minister of Regional Development and Tourism Elena Udrea. In return, the Social Democratic Party, the National Liberal Party and the Conservative Party oppose the closure of sectors.

"The Capital Referendum – pure nonsense in 7 questions", the Adevărul believes.

Bucharest residents will answer seven questions, which sociologists consider awkward and irrelevant.

The stake: only one general mayor or the current administration with six more sector mayors.

Mayor Sorin Oprescu suggested three days ago that only one question should be addressed to the city residents, but the local counsellors voted last night for the solution proposed by the PDL, which consisted of 7 questions so ambiguous, that some of them contradict each other.

The Adevărul also informs that, ‘Head of PDL Bucharest and Minister of Regional Development and Tourism Elena Udrea was in favor of approving the Capital Referendum and wrote on her personal blog about introducing seven questions that would make things clear for everybody’.

The Evenimentul Zilei found out that the referendum will imply costs of a few thousand euros.

Even if fuel costs will freeze for a while, oil companies will not hesitate to double price rises right after, in order to recover their previous costs.

This is what the main market operators declared for the newspaper.

On the other side, sources from the European Commission declared that the freeze on fuel price is not against European regulations.

"Free pass for asphalting protected natural areas", the Jurnalul Naţional headlines, who draws attention that Romania is about to cause a huge international scandal and risks being fined by the European Union because of an Government ordinance, approved by Parliament and issued by the President with respect to the protected natural areas, the conservation of natural habitats and wild flora and fauna.

The new law allows construction and investments in some areas which are protected by the European legislation.

Authorities amended the law with a new article by which the Ministry of Environment and Forests can withdraw the statute of protected natural area for some of the zones that have lost their value and capacity for conservation, which, in the newspaper’s opinion, opens the door to abuses, as decisions on this kind of projects are made by political appointed authorities.

The România Liberă talks about the new developments in the case of the former advisor to the Minister of Education Melania Mandas Vergu, accused of corruption.

Therefore, the National Agency for Integrity notified the National Anticorruption Directorate over the financial crimes and the conflict of interest of which the former advisor is guilty.

The defended is accused of having turned her home into an office, for which she received European funds that were actually used for rearranging her personal residence.

Translated by: Mihaela Grigoraş
MA Student, MTTLC, Bucharest University