Romanian MPs protect former minister against investigation

The Chamber of Deputies’ legal committee voted yesterday against the prosecution of the former EU funds minister Rovana Plumb, who has recently submitted her resignation. Prosecutors have recently started investigating her in a case that could be ultimately targeting the Social Democratic leader Liviu Dragnea. Plumb was questioned in the parliamentary committee for about an hour. She said that the charges brought to her don’t have a legal support. The vote was secret. Fourteen MPs supported her, while nine voted against her, reports local News.ro. The legal committee’s opinion will be sent to the Chamber of Deputies' plenum, which will vote by secret ballot today on Plumb's criminal prosecution. In the case of ministers or other officials protected by parliamentary immunity, the National Anticorruption Directorate (DNA) needs the Parliament’s approval to start the prosecution. On September 22, DNA announced that Sevil Shhaideh, resigning development minister, and Rovana Plumb, resigning EU Funds minister, are being prosecuted for abuse of office. The anticorruption prosecutors are investigating the circumstances in which an island on the Danube was transferred from the state company “Apele Romane” to the administration of Teleorman County Council and then leased to a private company whose name has been associated by the local media with that of Social Democratic leader Liviu Dragnea. According to the DNA prosecutors, the government decision (HG) through which the Belina Island was transferred from the Apele Romane national company to the Teleorman County Council was illegal and that such a transfer could only have been decided by law. Sevil Shhaideh, who was a state secretary in the Regional Development Ministry, and Rovana Plumb, who was environment minister and had the Apele Romane company under her management, may have thus committed abuse of office. The two ministers submitted their resignations last week after prime minister Mihai Tudose asked that they be removed from his cabinet. editor@romania-insider.com (photo source: Rovanaplumb.ro)