Moldovan president Maia Sandu on July 11 nominated Vasile Tofan, senior partner and a member of the Investment Committee of the Kyiv-based private equity fund Horizon Capital, as a candidate for prime minister, following the proposal of the Action and Solidarity Party (PAS). Tofan has expressed active support for Moldova’s EU accession and in favour of PAS over the past years, without a formal political role.

In a press conference on the same day, Tofan reiterated that the main objective of the future government remains European integration and qualified as "realistic" the objective of signing the accession treaty to the European Union by the end of 2028. 

But Tofan sent a less relevant message on July 4, when he published on Facebook a list of priorities for the would-be prime minister, after the resignation of Munteanu. The twelve key priorities include radical reforms in the public sector – some of them highly unpopular, such as higher retirement age, more flexible labour legislation, a fiscal reform that would favor the accumulation of capital, fiscal consolidation, and aggressive reduction of personnel in the budgetary sector, Zdg.md reported. The list prompted negative comments from NGOs such as the WatchDog.md organization.

The Speaker of the Parliament and president of PAS, Igor Grosu, assured Vasile Tofan that he will benefit from the full support of PAS. "We are a team," Grosu said. When asked to comment on the diverging visions of the Action and Solidarity Party (PAS) and candidate Vasile Tofan on certain topics, Grosu said that "in a discussion, in a polemic, we reach a common denominator." 

As regards the formation of the new government, Grosu involuntarily implied that PAS will have the final word. He mentioned that "we will also take into account the candidate's opinion" when asked about the composition and structure of the future government.

PAS and its leader Grosu previously implied that limited, if any, changes will be made to the former government after the resignation of PM Munteanu.

On his part, Tofan implied that the future government "in an expanded format" will also include new people. 

iulian@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Presedinte.md)