Romanian minister of Tourism left Commission hearings after requesting members to be replaced

Romanian minister of Tourism Elena Udrea handed in penal complaints at the Prosecutor General Office against members of the Parliamentary Commission investigating her, who were featured in the recordings made public by the press. Despite having announced earlier she will not come in front of the Commission today, Udrea arrived on Thursday around 11 AM (the local time) for the parliamentary forum’s hearings.

She declared she had submitted a complaint against five Commission members who took part in the „plot unveiled by mass-media”: Ludovic Orban Adriana Saftoiu, Aura Vasile, Dumitru Chirita and Taga Claudiu. Udrea claimed to have used her „citizen” quality „before the minister role”.

The Tourism minister said she accused them of abusing their position against public interest, false testimony and „association for offending acts”. The lib-dem minister said she was ready to stand in front of a Commission, even made up by the social-democrats (governing) and liberals (opposition), as long as they don’t belong to the group „that compromised itself, that showed it was acting abusively and illegally against me”. „This commission lost its authority to hear a minister, she said.

Before leaving the hearings, she added that she is only to return to be heard if the five members are to be replaced or are to hand in their resignation. I came in here today out of respect for the state’s institutions. The members featured in the recordings ought to give up even their Parliament seats”, Tourism minister concluded.