Political storm breaks loose in Romania: PM faces corruption charges, no-confidence motion

Romania’s anticorruption prosecutors started a criminal investigation on Prime Minister Victor Ponta for alleged corruption offenses. Ponta went to the DNA headquarters on Friday, June 5, to take note of the accusations against him. Meanwhile, the opposition filed a no-confidence motion against the Government. The National Anticorruption Directorate (DNA) announced on Friday that it started the prosecution proceedings against Victor Ponta for 17 counts of forgery, accessory to tax evasion and money laundering, as well as conflict of interest. The accusations are related to Ponta’s activity as a lawyer for Sova and Associates law firm, owned by his friend Dan Sova. When he got out of the DNA headquarters, Ponta said that political battles shouldn’t be fought at DNA but in the Parliament, hinting that the case against him was fabricated. The prosecutors alleged that Victor Ponta received some EUR 40,000 from Sova’s law firm, between 2007 and 2008, although he didn’t actually do anything at the firm. They also said that the firm made up activity report for the pretense work that Ponta did for the firm. Ponta used the money he received to buy two luxury apartments in Bucharest. In 2009, Ponta also received a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 10 car from Sova’s law firm, without paying for it. DNA also accused Victor Ponta of conflict of interest, as Prime Minister, because he named Dan Sova minister in his cabinet, in 2012, after previously being on Sova’s payroll. Senator Dan Sova, a former minister in Victor Ponta’s cabinet from 2012 until 2014, is currently the main character in a corruption case related to several contracts his law firm got from state-owned energy companies in 2007. Ponta was working with Sova at that time. The anticorruption prosecutors have asked the Senate to waive Sova’s immunity and to allow them to arrest the senator. The Senate rejected DNA’s request following a controversial vote (on March 25), although more than half of the senators who were present voted for Sova’s arrest (but less than half of the total number of senators). The Constitutional Court said the Senate’s interpretation of the vote was unconstitutional. The Senate held another vote at the end of May, but DNA’s arrest request was rejected again. Romania’s former Transport Minister Dan Sova questioned by anticorruption prosecutors Former Romanian Transport Minister charged with complicity in abuse of office While Victor Ponta was at the DNA headquarters, the leaders of the liberal party were filing their no-confidence motion against the Government. The Parliament will vote on this motion in the next two weeks. Victor Ponta’s Social Democratic Party (PSD) and their allies hold the majority in Romania’s Parliament, so the motion has little theoretical chances to pass. Ponta has had a rough run since