Moldovan President Maia Sandu signed on Friday, February 10, the decree on the nomination of Dorin Recean as candidate for the post of prime minister.

“Mr. Dorin Recean is nominated as a candidate for the post of prime minister and is authorized to draw up the programme of activities and the list of the Government and submit them to the Parliament for consideration,” according to the document.

According to the law on the Government, the candidate for the post of Prime Minister shall request, within 15 calendar days of his nomination, the vote of confidence of the Parliament on the programme of activities and the whole list of the Government.

According to the law, the resignation of the Prime Minister automatically entails the resignation of the entire Government. At the same time, the Government whose mandate has ceased performs only public administration duties, without being able to adopt and submit to the Parliament for consideration draft normative acts and draft policy documents; adopt ordinances and policy documents; endorse legislative initiatives, including draft laws, and examine legislative proposals; conclude international treaties involving financial commitments for Moldova.

Dorin Recean: “I will immediately proceed to the formation of the governmental line-up”

Moldova’s prime ministerial nominee, Dorin Recean, said he will “immediately start forming the cabinet”. He announced the three directions on which the future government will focus.

Prime Minister Natalia Gavrilița announced her resignation at a press briefing on Friday 10 February.

Dorin Recean has held the position of presidential adviser on defence and national security, secretary of the Supreme Security Council (SSC) since 4 February 2022. He was Minister of the Interior in the Filat government from 2012-2015.

In February 2013, Dorin Recean, as Interior Minister in the government led by Vlad Filat, was the protagonist of a media scandal after a recording of a telephone conversation between him and Nicolae Vicol, then head of the State Tax Service, appeared in public. In the conversation, Recean allegedly gave instructions to the head of the FISC, being angry about his behaviour. The discussions came to light in the context of the criminal case against Nicolae Vicol, whose phone was intercepted.

In 2015, the Prosecutor General’s Office opened a criminal investigation into Dorin Recean for exceeding his official duties. The file, according to the former minister at the time, was opened following a complaint filed by policeman Ruslan Saachian, one of the important figures during the April 2009 events, who was dismissed and reinstated by the court several times. The case was subsequently closed.

According to the latest declaration of personal assets and interests filed with the National Integrity Authority (ANI), in 2021, Recean received 4200 euros from the American company “dorGov Solutions LLC” for consulting services, 26 332 lei from his position as a university lecturer at the Technical University of Moldova, 9250 dollars for consulting services at the United Nations Development Programme and 21 750 euros from the company “Alco Limited” for consulting services.