Caretaker Foreign Minister returns to Presidency files on ministers’ investigation

Caretaker Foreign Minister Teodor Melescanu on Friday remitted to the Presidency a letter specifying he cannot refer to the Prosecution Office the documentation on the start of the prosecution of eight former and current ministers, because it is incomplete, consisting only of the reports of the trial prosecutors and of the institution’s department head prosecutors, whilst the actual files are missing.

‘Having examined the documentation received from the Presidency, we found it was incomplete, consisting only of the reports of the trial prosecutors and department head prosecutors, whereas the actual files were missing. Under such circumstances, the Justice Ministry could not set the files at the disposition of the Prosecution Office, as the law requires,’ reads a release of the Justice Ministry remitted to Rompres.

According to the Justice Ministry, the head of the state has the obligation to transmit the Justice Minister the case files, the content of which is anyway registered in the reports of the Prosecution.

As the files were not handed in, the Justice Minister is currently in the ‘legal, objective impossibility to exert his responsibilities as specified by Law no. 115/1999 on ministerial accountability,’ reads the release.

Teodor Melescanu sent the President a letter on this subject and will further return to the Cotroceni Presidential Palace the entire documentation regarding the start of prosecution against the former and current dignitaries.

On January 16, President Traian Basescu addressed caretaker Justice Minister Teodor Melescanu the request to start legal proceedings to prosecute eight former and current government members.

According to the Presidential Office, the head of state ordered prosecution proceedings against Labor Minister Paul Pacuraru and former members of the Tariceanu ruling line-up Tudor Chiuariu, Zsolt Nagy, Decebal Traian Remes and Codrut Seres, as well as against former ministers Adrian Nastase, Miron Mitrea and Victor Babiuc.

According to art. 18 of Law no. 115/1999, if one of the Parliament Chambers or the President of Romania requests a criminal probe, the file shall be promptly remitted to the Justice Minister or – depending on the case – to the Prime Minister, for them to take steps according to the law. ROMPRES