Romania’s president blasts government over corruption report

Published On: July 10, 2019 07:30 PM NPT By: Associated Press

Moldova's Prime Minister Maia Sandu, left, shakes hands with Romanian President Klaus Iohannis at the Cotroceni Presidential Palace in Bucharest, Romania, Tuesday, July 2, 2019. Sandu is on the first visit abroad after the political turmoil that followed the formation of her country's new government last month. (AP Photo/Andreea Alexandru)

BUCHAREST, July 10: Romania’s president says the country’s government is ignoring the will of its own citizens by not adopting anti-corruption recommendations made by a European anti-graft body.

President Klaus Iohannis said Wednesday that it was “extremely worrying” that Romania was still in the focus of European institutions.

A report by the Council of Europe’s corruption monitoring division said Tuesday that Romania had fully complied with only four of 13 recommendations for handling high-level corruption.

Iohannis, a former leader of Romania’s National Liberal Party, said that the ruling coalition led by Prime Minister Viorica Dancila’s Social Democrat Party, “got a red card once again” for the “damages made by this government by modifying the justice and penal laws.”

Romania has faced international criticism because of legal changes considered to undermine anti-corruption efforts.