Valeriu Lazar on March 25 tendered his resignation from the administration of the Chamber of Trade and Industry. In a press release, Valeriu Lazar explains the reasons for his decision, noting that he found himself with the hands tied and his resignation is the only way to wake up the Chamber’s Board, whose duty is to serve the interests of entrepreneurs, not of persons who ‘got angry’ with the Chamber and its chairman, IPN reports.
Valeriu Lazar said that when he was appointed to this post, he submitted a strategic development program until 2017 to the Board. The program, which was adopted unanimously by the Board, was designed to ensure the adjustment of the national chamber system to the requirements of time and to the best practices of running business representation and support organizations.
“I always considered that the Chamber of Trade and Industry, which has the legal status of public interest, must not provide primarily services for money on competition markets, alongside many other private operators with unmotivated competition advantages offered by the state, which are inacceptable in a market economy. I strongly believe that a modern organization must not include an opaque financial management system without transparent procurement procedures. The ‘gang’ approaches are not normal for me, including within programs offered to the institution by donors,” stated Valeriu Lazar.
According to him, even if most of the members of the Chamber and the staff realize the necessity of making the changes stipulated in the strategic development program, some of the Board members and employees of the Chamber, who were ‘beneficiaries’ of the previous management system, started to boycott and even block the implementation process. “Moreover, some of these resigned and later launched ‘subversive’ activities to denigrate me and the institution by different ways. The decision of the Chamber’s Board of the end of 2015, by which the decision to approve the strategic development program made a year ago was abrogated, was the highpoint. Figuratively speaking, I found myself with the hands tied,” said Valeriu Lazar.
He added that until the extraordinary congress is convened, the post of chairman of the Chamber of Trade and Industry will be held on an interim basis by deputy chairman Tudor Olaru.
Valeriu Lazar was named chairman of the Chamber in July 2014. After his appointment, this left the Democratic Party. Earlier, Lazar served as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy.
