Cristian Preda: Anastasiu's problem is not legal, ethical and political. “I would not want the reformist breath of the prime minister to be cooked by this scandal.”
Cristian Preda. Photo: Inquam Photos / George Călin
The political scientist Cristian Preda states on Friday that the situation of Deputy Prime Minister Dragoș Anastasiu, who was involved in a corruption file in which he acknowledged that he gave eight years to an ANAF inspector, raises ethics and credibility problems for the reformist agenda of the current Government.
“In the file – it is about the bribe given to some officials ANAF – I was a witness, not a denouncer, says Deputy Prime Minister Anastasiu. His problem is not, however.
A credible reform of the state cannot be made by ignoring these two dimensions. I would not want the reformist breath of the prime minister to be cooked by the Anastasiu-Anaf scandal, ”Preda wrote on Friday in a Facebook post.
The file in which Anastasiu was involved
For 8 years, between 2009-2017, the companies of Deputy Prime Minister Dragoș Anastasiu bribed an ANAF inspector in order not to have problems with controls, according to a DNA investigation, completed two years ago with a definitive sentence of the officer who took a bribe. Anastasiu acknowledged the bribe of ANAF employee both in front of DNA and judges. Neither he nor his employees were charged because his business partner has filed the DNA.
The representatives of the Romanian Government claim that the “circumstances of the case” in which Deputy Prime Minister Dragoș Anastasiu acknowledged in court that his company has bribed an ANAF inspector “have nothing to do with the quality of deputy prime minister and to the duties of Mr. Dragoș Anastasiu”.
In a first reaction, Dragoș Anastasiu says that 15-17 years ago “some officials of the Romanian state press and even blackmail the companies”. He argues that as soon as he learned about the situation in his company he acted “correctly in the spirit of the law:” Being an entrepreneur, you manage several companies that, in their turn, are run by managers, it is impossible to have up -to -date information and detail about all the operations in progress. ”
