War veterans from several organizations have penned an open letter to President Maia Sandu, asking her to get the Government address their problems. The letter is undersigned by the National Union of Independence War Veterans, the Union of Veterans of the Afghanistan War, the Chernobyl Union and other organizations. They accuse the Government of “neglect” and, in protest, announce that they will participate separately this year in Independence Day festivities.
At a press conference on Thursday, Radu Prisac, president of the National Union of Independence War Veterans, said that at the beginning of August they organized a conference where they requested a meeting with Prime Minister Natalia Gavrilița. A draft law to improve the legislation on the social protection of war veterans was to be presented there. The meeting did not take place however. After they submitted a petition to the Government, it was forwarded to the Office on Relations with the Veterans, which, according to him, “keeps its doors shut to them”.
“We repeatedly ask for steps to be taken to expedite the passage of this bill in reasonable terms, considering that the Year of Gratitude is coming to an end. Another painful problem whose solution has been postponed since 2019 is related to the apartment building on 91/3Alba-Iulia Street. The building continues to deteriorate while the potential beneficiaries of these homes are either renting or already died”, says Radu Prisac. The 80-apartment building was promised to Chernobyl disaster liquidators.
The veterans think the Government’s inaction borders on “criminal” and therefore they demand resignations. “The competent authorities avoid solving the problem, which causes significant damage to the state budget, but also the loss of trust. Taking into account the Government’s irresponsible behavior towards solving the vital problems of veterans and their families, in protest, the war veterans will participate separately in this year’s Independence Day’s festivities, ignoring the country’s leadership”, said Radu Prisac.
Andrei Vicolaș, vice president of the Chernobyl Union, reiterated the urgent need to solve the problem related to the Alba Iulia apartment building. According to him, this “irresponsibility” leads to the deterioration of the building.
Veteran Andrei Calcea addressed the president, noting that veterans are the ones who defended the country with pride, and some of them even at the cost of their lives. “Prove yourself as a true commander, don’t be afraid of war veterans, widows, war invalids. We have not offended anyone in these 30 years. On the contrary, we tried to cooperate with all governmental institutions. Why so much neglect towards us, who defended the young country of the Republic of Moldova?”, said the veteran.
