Former Romanian PM could lead telecom regulator

Romania’s telecom regulator (ANCOM) could have a new president, five months after appointing the current one. Social Democratic leader Liviu Dragnea said yesterday that he had agreed to change ANCOM head Adrian Dita. Former prime minister Sorin Grindeanu could be the new president, Dragnea confirmed, reports local News.ro. Grindeanu was dismissed in June after a no-confidence motion introduced and voted by the governing Social Democratic Party (PSD). He refused to resign when the party asked him to and said he would only leave the government if Dragnea resigned from the helm of the Social Democratic Party (PSD). A few months after that, he had a meeting with Dragnea and the two reconciled. Grindeanu has recently said that current prime minister Mihai Tudose offered him a minister office. Prior to that, there have been other rumors that Grindeanu could be appointed ambassador. Nothing has come out of that. On May 11, Adrian Dita received the Parliament’s positive vote to become the president of the telecom regulator ANCOM. Dita, who had previously worked as Public Affairs Director within the Telekom group, immediately dismissed several top managers in ANCOM. Earlier this week, the Parliament decided to appoint two of the managers he had dismissed as ANCOM deputy presidents. At the end of April, the Grindeanu cabinet changed the appointment procedure for the ANCOM president. It removed the Romanian president from the procedure. The Government now makes the proposals, then sends them to the Parliament for approval. editor@romania-insider.com