Suspension Decision Is Politically Motivated, Unjust – Labor Min Pacuraru

Pacuraru assured all necessary measures have been taken and his suspension will not impair the ministry’s activity.

Pacuraru said he would make himself available to prosecutors when necessary, to help them clear his situation as soon as possible, to allow him to resume his work as minister.

Basescu should have reflected on the matter of the “increasing number of trivial matters to be prosecuted by the National Anticorruption Department (DNA) might not alter the object of activity of the institution,” Pacuraru told the press conference.

He added the Senate decided that the Judicial Commission found discrepancies between the recordings of the calls received by Pacuraru and the case filed by DNA. According to Pacuraru, the commission for legal matters intended to return the file to DNA for lack of evidence, as no connection could be made between the appointment of George Romanescu as inspector and the promise of this kind of job made to him.

Pacuraru said he received the proposition to appoint Romanescu as Inspector of the Local Labor inspectorate in Gorj county when he became labor minister.

"There are no clues leading to the belief that appointing Romanescu was illegal,” Pacuraru said.

Pacuraru was allegedly recorded while asking Gorj county liberal leader Ilie Morega to step in and ask the managers of the Oltenia National Coal Company (SNLO) and those of thermal power producers Turceni and Rovinari to grant contracts to his son’s company, Intratest.

Pacuraru said that, in a conversation with his son, Morega offered to facilitate a contract. The minister’s son, Mihnea Pacuraru, allegedly refused the offer politely, informing Morega that the mentioned contract had already been won through an auction. Pacuraru refused to reveal the value of contracts obtained by his son’s company in Gorj, adding that the only sums collected were for the “schooling of 45 people."

Pacuraru told the press conference Ilie Morega did not know anything about the occupation of the minister’s son, and they never spoke of any kind of privileges.

"Either the Anticorruption Department did not send the clues in the file, or this evidence does not exist. The senate’s approval of the DNA notice observes my right to address the justice institution,” Pacuraru said, adding that this does not mean the Senate reached the conclusion that he is guilty.

He said he will support all judicial procedures and will cooperate with investigators in the search for truth.

“Now the procedures will start from scratch, which is a waste of time, energy and money,” Pacuraru added.

He said he asked Prime Minister Tariceanu to accept his resignation in September 2007, when the bribery scandal started, but the latter refused and told him to carry out his mandate as labor minister.

He said that if he considered himself guilty of anything, he would have resigned immediately form the labor ministry.

The presidential staff announced Tuesday morning that Basescu signed the decree suspending Paul Pacuraru from his position of labor minister a day before, given that the anticorruption prosecutors officially charged him with bribery.

The decree will be published in the Official Gazette.

Pacuraru was officially charged with bribery Friday, and the minister went to the National Anticorruption Department to hear the charges brought against him.