On March 20, Mayor of Chisinau Dorin Chirtoaca announced that the municipal administration is ready to allocate 10 million lei a year for an area where the waste collected in the capital city could be stored. The waste during several days couldn’t be collected in Chisinau as inhabitants of Bubuieci, to whose landfill site the waste has been taken until now, blocked access of the garbage trucks of the municipal company “Autosalubritate”.
President of Moldova Igor Dodon on March 20 signed a decree to fire Eduard Grama from the post of minister of agriculture and food industry based on the latter’s resignation. Eduard Grama is investigated for taking bribe for contributing to the illegal transfer of plots owned by the Chisinau Winemaking and Winegrowing College to a business entity based in Stauceni.
Also on March 20, Avia Invest director general Petru Jardan announced that the Chisinau International Airport will have a new landing strip as of May 2018. The building works were estimated at €15-16 million. The works on the new runway already started. This will be 2,400 meters long and 45 meters wide. 1-2.2 meters of the current runway will be demolished to build a modern runway from zero.
Prosecutors on March 20 announced that former MP Iurie Bolboceanu faces up to 20 years in jail for treason and espionage against the Republic of Moldova. The ex-MP was arrested on March 17 when he transmitted information of national interest to the representative of a foreign secret service, who worked under diplomatic cover.
On March 20, the Chisinau Court pronounced a decision by which it suspended the implementation of President Igor Dodon’s decree to withdraw the Moldovan nationality granted to ex-Romanian President Traian Basescu. The former President’s lawyers went to Moldovan courts, demanding that Igor Dodon’s decree should be annulled as illegal. The first hearing in this case was scheduled for May 16.
The Government on March 22 approved the national public order and security strategy for 2017-2020 that aims to increase the protection of the people, society and the state. The strategy envisions the improvement of the quality of services for ensuring public order and the people’s security, including by involving civil society in fighting offenses.
A limited-format meeting of the Governments of Moldova and Romania was held in Piatra Neamt on March 23. In a joint news conference after it, the Prime Ministers of Moldova and Romania Pavel Filip and Sorin Grindeanu announced that the European Commission decided to increase the grant provided to Moldova for building the Ungheni-Chisinau gas pipeline by €30 million and this will enable to put the gas pipeline into commission by the end of 2018, not 2019, as it was earlier planned.
The Standing Bureau on March 23 announced that the parliamentary delegation of Moldova will not take part in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Commonwealth of Independent States that will take place in Saint Petersburg this week. The Socialist MPs said the decision is incorrect and they will go to the event at their own expense.
A biomass energy cluster was established on March 24, following Romania’s model, to promote the development of the biomass energy sector through advocacy, research, international cooperation. The cluster will embrace private companies, public authorities, research institutions, universities, active associations of green energy sector.
Parliament on March 24 decided to create a special commission for drafting a package of legislative amendments on suicide prevention at the proposal of the Socialist group. The commission will assess the general suicide situation and will analyze the factors that determine children and young people to have suicidal behavior.
Selection by Sabina Rebeja, IPN