The journalist Robert Turcescu is the official candidate of The People’s Movement Party (PMP) for the Bucharest City Hall. The official announcement has been made by Traian Băsescu on Friday, in a joint press conference, held together with Robert Turcescu.
Traian Băsescu stated that he intended to be himself the PMP candidate for the Bucharest City Hall, but this isn’t possible anymore, due to his prosecution in the Căşuneanu case. „I intended to apply for the General Mayor position, but unfortunately last days I received a summons from the Prosecutor’s Office, saying that I am suspect in a money laundering case” said Traian Băsescu before announcing his support for Robert Turcescu’s candidacy for the Capital from PMP’s side.
“By this, they forced me to give up my candidacy. I am a suspect and this would have been denied all my ten years of mandate, and I care about them. I pleaded for clean people in politics, people not being suspected because of criminal complaints submitted against them, and this forced me to give up applying for the General Mayor position and to continue the projects which I started when I was the General Mayor of the Capital, helping PMP at the same time. I will support the candidates from my position of the president of the party, including the candidate for the Bucharest City Hall, Robert Turcescu, a man who worked in Media for 23 years, who always acted as a right-oriented man, who is a member of the party since the beginning of the year, a family man having two children and who fulfills all the criteria in order to be the PMP candidate for the Bucharest General mayor. I’ve appreciated he had the power to be fair, admitting that Oprea made him a reserve officer”, Basescu stated.
Turcescu: I don’t have promises, but a vision for Bucharest
Robert Turcescu stated that he doesn’t have promises for Bucharest citizens, but he has a vision. “It’s a vision for development. Bucharest is a suffering city. I chose and I accepted to be the PMP candidate for the General Mayor position because it’s time for a change, a time of a new generation which include me, my colleagues, but especially 80 percent of the PMP members. We all share the belief that there’s time for a generational and attitudinal change. I tell to my counter-candidates that I will beat them up!”, Robert Turcescu said right after the announcement of his candidacy.
„The battle for Bucharest isn’t just a battle anymore, we assist to a confrontation which I wish to have a happy-end. I have an integrated project and I hope Bucharest citizens will understand that it’s time for a change and that Traian Băsescu’s projects must be urgently pursued”, pointed Robert Turcescu.
The former journalist is convinced that having Traian Băsescu beside him is an advantage: “Traian Băsescu executed a performing management project during his mandate as the General Mayor of Bucharest. None of my counter-candidates doesn’t have beside him a man with such a political experience. Traian Băsescu is beside us and his promise that he will be involved is related to the support of the candidates, but in particular we have the chance, as teams, to benefit of the best trainer”.
Robert Turcescu also commented on the subject of his disclosure related to the fact that he was an under cover officer. “I never betrayed my country. I assumed my mistakes too, I myself made them public, preventing any blackmail from anybody. I am available for my ex-colleagues in Media for an applied discussion on what Bucharest 2030 means, a project which could transform Bucharest into a real Capital. This city, I can hardly tell, but I do it without any hesitation, really must be an European capital. It doesn’t look like this today, it’s an abandoned city. I have two children, one of them is a teenager and the other one is a baby, and I want them to live in a city they love, and not to wish run away from it because of too much dust, too much corruption, or inefficient management”, Turcescu stated.
Traian Băsescu: I couldn’t have been a candidate, since I am a suspect. I will make public the story of this case
Former president Traian Băsescu stated on Sunday, at Bistriţa, on the occasion of launching the candidates of People’s Movement Party for local elections, that he chose not to apply for the General Mayor position, because he couldn’t have done such a thing since he is suspect in a case of money laundering.
“It’s a great misery, but consider the premise that I asserted at the end of my mandate that I subdued the old system, but I couldn’t make it disappear. It manifested prior to my submission in the competition for the Bucharest City Hall and put me in an impossible situation, namely to apply while I am a suspect – and I couldn’t accept this, because I would have denied my whole ten years mandate at Cotroceni. But I can assure you this is a lie, a manner of solving political issues that is still applied by those who feed themselves from Voiculescu’s teaching, but also by his servants inside the state institutions. It’s a dirty game” said Băsescu in front of around 400 members and fans of his party that were present at the Bistriţa meeting.
“I will not hesitate to make this story public in the next days, but we don’t have to sadden our day today. I told you what I couldn’t accept: to apply for the City Hall by denying my mandate, to line up in this group campaign together with all delinquents from PSD and PNL which are going to compete, and everybody to tell that Băsescu is in the same category with Piedone, Olguţa Vasilescu and all the prosecuted mayors which are going to run in this competition. I couldn’t accept this thing and I would have been contradict the philosophy of this young party. I would have led you to troubles”, Băsescu explained.
Traian Băsescu added that “there isn’t possible to exist any denouncement” in this case, giving the example of his activity since the last 20 years in important official positions, and that he’s hoping that the General Prosecutor’s Office will pronounce until the autumn elections.
PMP President Traian Băsescu confirmed on April 20 that he was informed by the General Prosecutor’s Office that he is suspect in a case of money laundering related to the purchase of a land, and mentioned that he will be present at the prosecutor’s office right after he will be summoned, adding that on June 2012, the same authority decided not to start prosecution against him in the same case.
Turcescu: Gathering signatures is going well
PMP candidate to the City Hall, Robert Turcescu, stated on Saturday that gathering the signatures is going well and that he will submit his candidacy on Monday, after a meeting will take place at the party’s headquarter on Sunday in order to asses the number of signatures.
“Gathering signatures is going well, we work hard at this. I will probably submit my candidacy on Monday. We have a party meeting tomorrow (on Sunday – e.n.), in which we will assess the number of signatures collected until now. There will not be any kind of problems, as far as I am concerned, so that on Monday we’ll enter the competition. Of course there’s always a feeling of excitement until the validation moment, but it’s a positive one”, Turcescu stated after his party colleague Valentin Niţu submitted his candidacy for the Sector 5 Town Hall, according to Mediafax.
Valentin Niţu stated that he applied in order to put in the service of the citizens his experience gained in the public and private sector.
“I apply to put in the service of the citizens my experience gained in the local public management and in the private sector. I submitted my candidacy, obviously excited, having the support of the future mayor of the Capital” said Niţu.
