Nine former Romanian ministers to be prosecuted for corruption in the IT licenses case

Romania’s Anticorruption Directorate – DNA announced its intention to prosecute nine former ministers in Romania’s Government for corruption during their mandates related to the acquisition of IT licenses by the Romanian state at unjustified prices. The DNA sent requests to the European Parliament, Romania’s Presidency and also to the Senate and Chamber of Deputies to ask for their approval to start prosecution, as all nine are members of these institutions and benefit from immunity. The nine former ministers who are investigated and the charges are as follows: Ecaterina Andronescu, minister of Education between December 2000 and June 2003 and 2008 -2012, who is now a senator in Romania’s Parliament, for abuse of power, taking bribe and money laundering; Valerian Vreme, minister of Communications from September 2010 to February 2012, now deputy in Romania’s Parliament, for abuse of power; Serban Mihailescu, General Secretary of the Government from December 2000 until October 2003, now a senator, for instigation to abuse of office, influence trading and money laundering; Dan Nica, minister of Communications from 2000 until 2004, now a member of the European Parliament, for abuse of office, taking bribe, influence trading and money laundering; Adriana Ticau, minister of Communications from July to December 2004; Gabriel Sandu, minister of Communications from December 2008 until September 2010; Daniel Funeriu, minister of Communications from 2009 until 2012; Alexandru Athanasiu, minister of Education from 2003 until 2005; And Mihai Tanasescu, minister of Finance from 2000 until 2004. They are all accused of having signed contracts to acquire IT licenses as well as software and hardware equipment for schools in Romania at unreasonably high prices. According to the preliminary investigations in this case, the difference between the price paid by the Government for these acquisitions and the real value of the purchased goods was transferred to various firms, and a part of the sums were received by the ministers who signed the contracts via off-shore firms. In one of this cases, which involves the acquisition of Microsoft licenses and in which Fujitsu Siemens Computers was one of the contracting parts, the Government paid USD 54 million, out of which USD 20 million were fees to persons involved in the project for Romania’s Government, ministers and by the firms involved in the contract, according to DNA. Another case targets the USD 200 million project to equip schools in Romania with computers and software, which was awarded to Siveco and other firms, for prices 30% to 50% higher than market prices, the prosecutors also found. Siveco’s president and shareholder Irina Socol was arrested earlier in September in a tax evasion case. editor@romania-insider.com