The current performance of the Security and Intelligence Service (SIS) is not adequate, in the sense that the intelligence provided to the Administration is qualitatively insufficient, says Sergiu Ostaf, president of the National Participatory Council (CNP), who represents the civil society and is mandated to publicly comment on the SIS modernization model, reports Info-Prim Neo. “There is a great deal of political influence on the Service both in appointment matters and as concerns its work itself, which diminishes its performance”, mentioned Sergiu Ostaf during a roundtable on the subject. Sergiu Ostaf says that another issue is the population’s misconception of the institution. People perceive the SIS as a threat for citizens, and building confidence is necessary in this sense. “Society expects professional service; a Service that acts in public interest and that can prove society that it has concrete results for better security”, Sergiu Ostaf said. Foreign Security and Policy Group Coordinator Arcadie Barbarosie, CNP member, stated that until 2009 this institution was also being used as political police, especially during the last communist government. “No good things happened after 2009 as well, because the ruling Alliance wanted to partition many institutions based on political affiliation, which is unacceptable for such an institution”, the expert noted. In his opinion, a plan to depoliticize the SIS is necessary. “There are sufficient reasons to believe that different Parties each try to get their share”, added Arcadie Barbarosie. An important question is who will issue the tasks for the SIS: the Presidency, the Parliament, or the Government, because current Law stipulates that the President issues tasks, but the same Law says that the service provides information to the President, Speaker and Premier. A solution, in Arcadie Barbarosie’s opinion, is for tasks to be coordinated by all three institutions, and for the same information to be distributed among all three. SIS deputy director Valeriu Dediu stated that there will be several changes. Firstly, the legislation must be modified to exclude political implication in the service’s activity. Likewise, it is important to separate responsibility within the institution, as well as the responsibilities of institutions responsible for state security, such as the MIA and CCECC. The strategy for modernizing the Service was adopted by the Parliament in 2008. The goal is to strengthen SIS’s capacity to properly ensure the security of the Republic of Moldova.