In the beginning of march, nominated the EU-parliament Codruta Kövesi to become the general manager of the union’s new public prosecutor’s office to investigate fraud against the EU budget.
the Choice was not surprising. During five years, between 2013 oh 2018, she led a antikorruptionsmyndighet at home in Romania, with results that aroused the echo in the whole of Europe.
She brought charges against hundreds of judges and prosecutors, and dozens of politicians, among them several former ministers. 90% of the defendants sentenced, and the public’s confidence in her authority DNA was six times higher than for parliament.
in a country which since joining the EU in 2007, has found itself in a special ”monitoring” from the union side.
But most of the politicians Codruta Kövesi has brought to justice come from the ruling party, the PSD, among them the mighty leader Liviu Dragnea. He was sentenced by 2015 for electoral fraud, and later for corruption. Further investigation is in progress.
In the beginning of 2017 attempted to PSD push through a proposal in parliament that would make it easier for politicians to avoid punishment for corruption. It caused popular anger and sparked off massive protests.
a hero among those who protested, at the same time as she was mocked in the loyalist media.
finally she got fired, and the government has vocally opposed her nomination to the post of prosecutor of the year. Sole EU representative has given her its support. But now they raise the Romania operations.
On Thursday she was called to a six-hour interrogation of a specialåklagare in Bucharest. She has been placed under surveillance and not allowed to leave the country. In addition, prohibited her to speak with the media.
– It is an attempt to silence me and intimidate all of us within the judicial system who’ve done our job, ” she said to reporters outside the prosecutor’s office.
During Friday has a series of EU representatives protested against Romania’s action, among them Manfred Weber, who is the candidate for the post of EUROPEAN commission president. He calls the measures ”totally unacceptable”.
https://twitter.com/ManfredWeber/status/1111595454079348736
Read more: Corruption is a matter of life and death in Romania
