Changes from report parliamentary committee draft to plenary report

Professional experience

1. Please list your professional experience in public finance be it in budgetary planning, budget implementation or management or budget control or auditing.

A:

 As manager in the private sector

i. I proposed, negotiated, approved and controlled budgets of EUR tens of millions in the different companies I managed.

 As Senator in the Romanian Parliament:

i. I discussed, amended and approved eight of the Romanian yearly budgets with all the activities involved in this laborious process.

ii. I received, analysed, and was involved in amending, approving or rejecting the budgets of the institutions that operate directly under the supervision of the Senate of Romania – Romanian National Television, Romanian National Radio, the Romanian Cultural Institute, the Audio Visual Council, among others.

iii. I was involved in top level decisions during major crises, including the pandemic and the energy crisis, where the budgetary impact and control over decisions was a key priority.

 As Minister of Culture

i. I analysed past years’ budgets and drew conclusions on the performance of the previous budgets and implemented corrective measures where necessary.

ii. I drew up the yearly budgets, negotiated them with the Ministry of Finance and presented them in front of the Romanian parliament – the yearly budget of the Ministry of Culture is about EUR 300 million.

iii. I oversaw the execution of the yearly budgets both in terms of performance and legality.

iv. I worked closely with the Romanian Court of Accounts in all aspects related to their activities concerning my ministry.

 As President of Buzau County

i. I analysed the previous years’ budgets to allow me to draw conclusions on the County’s financial performance and subsequently prepared budgetary corrections for the next period.

ii. I drew up the 2025 budget and supervised its approval by the County counsellors – the yearly budget is about EUR 110 million.

2. What have been your most significant achievements in your professional career?

A: Considering the scope of this questionnaire, I would list some of the achievements related to the financial and budgetary fields:

i. In my first mandate as Minister, I was able to increase the budget of the Ministry of Culture by 47 % and oversaw an execution rate of more than 98 % without any adverse opinion from the Romanian Court of Accounts.

ii. As the leader of the group of the Social Democratic Party senators I was a key actor in the negotiation and successful vote of the Romania’s annual budgets in due time.

iii. As member of the Parliament during the COVID-19 crisis I was able, together with my colleagues, to ensure – through the necessary Parliamentary decisions – all the resources that the state needed to fight the pandemic and follow-up the way the resources were allocated and spent.

3. What has been your professional experience of international multicultural and multilinguistic organisations or institutions based outside your home country?

A:

i. In the private sector I worked on top executive positions for multinational companies, where I exposed to different cultures within the organisations I worked for.

ii. As a member of the Romanian parliament and a committee chair, I was constantly involved in activities of parliamentary diplomacy with representatives of different countries and cultures. As the President of the Romanian Parliament delegation to the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) I was involved in meetings, discussions and negotiations with representatives from more than 50 member countries.

iii. As a minister I had the opportunity to have a full international agenda with meetings and negotiations with colleagues from different countries and cultures.

4. Have you been granted discharge for the management duties you carried out previously, if such a procedure applies?

A: The duties I carried out previously were not subject to a discharge procedure.

5. Which of your previous professional positions were a result of a political nomination?

A: For the past eight years of my career, I was in the public service following general or local elections and I was appointed twice as Minister of Culture. All positions were held as a member of the Social Democratic Party (PSD).

6. What are the three most important decisions to which you have been party in your professional life?

A: Having a career that spans over decades, there were several important decisions that made the difference, and I am proud of. I will mention three of them, which are relevant for the three main chapters of my career so far, in the private sector, government and parliament:

i. One of my important decisions I made during my years as manager in the private sector was the deep restructuring of the division I was in charge of in within Ringier Romania, the result being that the newspaper and magazine titles in my portfolio accounted for 50 % of the group’s turnover and almost 100 % of the group’s profit.

ii. As Minister of Culture, I was able to restructure and streamline the budget to allocate 270 % more money to domestic cultural projects than in the preceding year.

iii. As a senator and group leader I supported, negotiated in the committees and got the votes for the investment programmes of the Government, including recovery and resilience fund (RRF) projects, which reached almost 7 % of Romania’s GDP in 2024.

Independence

7. The Treaty stipulates that the Members of the Court of Auditors must be ‘completely independent’ in the performance of their duties. How would you act on this obligation in the discharge of your prospective duties?

A: If confirmed, as a Member of the Court of Auditors, I commit myself to carry out my duties in full independence and with the highest ethical standards, in the general interest of the European Union and of the European citizens, and in full respect of the Treaties’ provisions and the Rules of Procedure of the Court. I will fully comply with the provisions of the Code of conduct for ECA members and observe the ethical principles enshrined therein: integrity, independence, objectivity, competence, professional behaviour, confidentiality, transparency, dignity, commitment, loyalty, discretion and collegiality.

I will neither seek nor take instructions from any government or other institution, body office, or entity. At the same time, I shall refrain from any action incompatible with my prospective duties, striving to set an example by my personal conduct. Even after the cessation of my duties, I undertake to ensure the confidentiality of information and respect the rules concerning appointments and benefits.

In this role, I will ensure that the Court’s independence is rigorously protected and that my duties are performed with integrity, impartiality and a strong commitment to the highest standards of public service.

8. Do you or your close relatives (parents, brothers and sisters, legal partner and children) have any business or financial holdings or any other commitments, which might conflict with your prospective duties?

A: Neither I nor any member of my family have any business or financial interests that could give rise to a conflict of interest with the duties and responsibilities associated with the role of Member of the European Court of Auditors (ECA).

9. Are you prepared to disclose all your financial interests and other commitments to the President of the Court and to make them public?

A: Yes, I am ready to disclose all requested information and provide a declaration of interest in accordance with the European Court of Auditors’ Code of Conduct and ethical guidelines, ensuring complete transparency and accountability.

10. Are you involved in any current legal proceedings? If so, please provide us with details.

A: No, I am not involved in any current legal proceedings.

11. Do you have any active or executive role in politics, if so at what level? Have you held any political position during the last 18 months? If so, please provide us with details.

A: Yes, I am currently the leader of the Buzau County organisation of the Social Democratic Party and the national spokesperson of the party for all matters.

12. Will you step down from any elected office or give up any active function with responsibilities in a political party if you are appointed as a Member of the Court?

A: Yes, without any hesitation. Becoming a member of ECA means that I will put an end to my political career.

13. How would you deal with a major irregularity or even fraud and/or corruption case involving persons in your Member State of origin?

A: If such a case happens, I would handle it in the same manner as any other case of fraud in any other Member State, with the utmost independence and integrity, taking a fully impartial, objective, unbiased and professional approach.

Upholding impartiality and integrity, respecting the rule of law, strictly following established policies, rules, and procedures, and ensuring fairness and equal treatment are all essential for any institution to function effectively and maintain the trust of EU citizens.

Performance of duties

14. What should be the main features of a sound financial management culture in any public service? How could the ECA help to enforce it?

A: Within the framework set by the Financial Regulation, sound financial management is understood as budget implementation in compliance with the three principles of:

i) economy

ii) efficiency