Laura Codruta Kovesi, the chief prosecutor of Romania’s National Anticorruption Directorate (DNA), will not go to the hearings organized by the parliamentary committee that is investigating the 2009 presidential elections, which brought Traian Basescu his second presidential mandate.

The MPs invited Kovesi to hearings on June 14, according to Social Democrat MP Mihai Fifor, the head of this committee.

Kovesi replied saying that prosecutors can’t be subpoenaed or obliged to participate in hearings organized by parliamentary committees, according to a decision of the Superior Magistracy Council (CSM) from 2007, reports local Mediafax. Moreover, she argued that two Constitutional Court decisions say that it’s unconstitutional to force anyone to appear before a parliamentary investigation committee.

Kovesi was the main target of the parliamentary investigation committee looking into the 2009 presidential elections. The parliamentary investigation started after local journalist Dan Andronic wrote that on the night of the 2009 elections he participated to a “dinner” at the house of former interior minister Gabriel Oprea, where Kovesi was also present together with the former director of the Romanian Intelligence Service (SRI) George Maior and former deputy director Florian Coldea.

According to Andronic, Kovesi and the others were talking about ways to counter the Social Democratic Party – PSD’s allegations about a possible rigging of the election result after the exit-polls showed PSD’s Mircea Geoana in front.

Kovesi was Romania’s general prosecutor at that time and in 2013 she became chief prosecutor of DNA.

Committee to investigate 2009 presidential elections in Romania starts activity

editor@romania-insider.com