We, the undersigned members of the National Platform of the Civil Society Forum, express our deep concern about the dismissal procedure of the Governor of the National Bank of Moldova by the Parliament, immediately after parliamentary hearings, during the Parliament’s plenary session on December 21, 2023, for the following reasons:
- This is a case of heavy political encroachment, unprecedented in the Republic of Moldova, on the activity of the monetary authority, undermining the principle of central bank independence, which is a fundamental element of the EU acquis and an prerequisite for the country’s macro-financial stability.
- A parliamentary hearing is not sufficient to ascertain all the circumstances and clearly articulate the reasons for the Governor’s dismissal, as independent and professional investigations into the case are necessary.
- The way the parliamentary hearing was conducted revealed the biased nature of the questions, comments and accusations made by some Parliament members, ignoring the peculiarities of the Governor’s mandate.
- The decision to dismiss the Governor immediately after such a hearing reveals that it was merely a formality, aimed at discrediting and “publicly executing” the Governor, and not at objectively elucidating the issues and allegations raised.
- No parliamentary investigation has been published that clearly states the reasons for the Governor’s dismissal, and the 4.5-page information note attached to the draft Parliament decision on the dismissal of the NBM Governor is, by any standard, insufficient in this respect.
- There were no public consultations on the allegations/issues raised by the Parliament with regard to the NBM activity.
- The fact that the new candidate was proposed immediately the day after the dismissal of the Governor confirms the staged nature of the parliamentary hearing of December 21, organised precisely for the purpose of dismissing the Governor.
- Overall, over the recent years, the NBM has received positive assessments in the exercise of its mandate, both from the IMF and the European Commission, with particular praise for the banking reform that followed the “billion theft” and which virtually eliminated all opportunities for similar bank frauds in the future.
We call on the Parliament to refrain from political encroachment on the work of the monetary authority. In fact, a precedent has been set, extremely dangerous for the macro-financial stability of the country, whereby any other administration could dismiss the NBM Governor at will.
We urge the new management of the NBM to be independent and resilient to possible political pressures, and to strengthen the independence of the institution which was seriously undermined during the Parliament session of December 21, 2023.
We call on the international community, particularly the International Monetary Fund and the European Union, to closely monitor the work of the NBM and possible political interferences with this institution, and to make financial support contingent on strengthening the independence of the monetary authority.
Signatory organisations, members of the Eastern Partnership National Civil Society Platform (the list is being updated):
- Independent Think-Tank „Expert-Grup”
- Institute for European Policies and Reforms (IPRE)
- Legal Resources Centre from Moldova (CRJM)
- Institute for Public Policy (IPP)
- Terra-1530 Association
- Eco-Tiras
- Association for Efficient and Responsible Governance (AGER)
- The Development Initiatives Laboratory “LID Moldova”
- National Youth Platform for Active Participation
- Pro-Europa (Comrat)