Maia Sandu: “The new Prime Minister is the right person for the government team”
President Maia Sandu emphasized the need for someone to revitalize the economy of the Republic of Moldova and attract investments, especially in light of the ongoing conflict on the border. She shared these insights during a broadcast on Rlive.md, explaining her decision to appoint Alexandru Munteanu as the new prime minister. The decision followed internal consultations within the Action and Solidarity Party (PAS) after Dorin Recean announced that he no longer wished to continue in his role. According to Maia Sandu, it was agreed that the new prime minister must possess a strong economic background to effectively manage the current challenges.
"We gathered together with some colleagues from PAS and discussed what the profile of the next prime minister would be. We decided that the profile should be economic, because we have a complicated situation both regionally and internally," explained Sandu.
The president mentioned that she has known Alexandru Munteanu since the 1990s, when he worked at the National Bank of Moldova and, later, at the World Bank. The head of state mentioned that he is a man with managerial experience, shares our values , and is good at economics. At the same time, "he is the right man" to lead the government team in the coming years.
The head of state confirmed that she had personally contacted Munteanu, after analyzing several options, and rejected rumors regarding the existence of "camps" within the Action and Solidarity Party (PAS).
"I contacted him. We analyzed a few people and after a while we managed to get Mr. Munteanu's agreement. It's natural for people to ask questions, but let's focus on the essence of things, not on rumours," declared Maia Sandu.
Referring to the criticism that Alexandru Munteanu comes from outside the country and was allegedly associated with offshore structures, the head of state compared the current situation to her own in 2012, when she was appointed Minister of Education and faced several criticisms.
"My experience was equally unpleasant, because one of the first questions I received from the press was: "Whose mistress are you?" - that's the only way someone could end up in a ministerial position. Obviously I was shocked, because you have a CV and you think that it is convincing enough not to be asked such questions. We also saw in the case of Mr. Munteanu that it is normal to ask for information and want to clarify things, but it is not right to send questions and, just 20 minutes later, publish an article with accusations, without giving him the right to reply. Not everyone in the Republic of Moldova understands how investment funds work, and many reading that article will believe the information without knowing the details”, added the president.
The head of state emphasized that it is “normal to ask for information”, but asked the press and public opinion “to do things correctly”, recalling that “it is not easy to convince good people to assume public office”.
Regarding the composition of the future government, the president explained that the decision-making process respects parliamentary procedures:
“When the candidate for the position of prime minister is officially nominated, I organize consultations with the factions. The candidate together with the deputies who support him will decide who will be part of the government”, added the official.
Maia Sandu stated that both the ministers who will remain and those who will leave, "have worked with great dedication and responsibility for the Republic of Moldova. For each area, we can present the results of their work, so that there are no misinterpretations or insinuations."
We recall that the Parliament Speaker, Igor Grosu, leader of the Action and Solidarity Party, announced on October 14, on social networks, that Alexandru Munteanu – an economist, university professor and businessman with a career of over 25 years in the field of international investments – would be proposed by PAS for the position of Prime Minister of the Republic of Moldova, after the validation of the deputy mandates by the Constitutional Court and the convening of the session to establish the new Parliament by the moldovan president Maia Sandu.
RISE Moldova revealed on October 15 that the candidate proposed by PAS appears in the documents of five companies in the tax haven of the British Virgin Islands. According to the investigation, these companies were allegedly managed by Cypriot lawyer Christodoulos Vassiliades, before he was sanctioned at the international level. Vassiliades, now 68, is also said to have provided financial assistance to Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov, a close Kremlin confidant, helping him shield his wealth from Western sanctions.
On his recently created Facebook page, Alexandru Munteanu publicly denied the information presented by journalists. The businessman stressed that he is willing to answer for every investment made, company founded and decision made.
