Romania: Organized Crime 'Has Infiltrated Top Level of Public Institutions', says Report

Published: 13 October 2015

By

The Romanian Intelligence Service (SRI) has published a damning report underscoring how corruption has damaged public finances, undermined citizens’ rights and negatively impacted Romania’s foreign relations, according to Mediafax Romania.

The annual report, which documents the agency’s observations from 2014, points to weaknesses in public administration and among lower-level private sector officials which have resulted in the poorer delivery of public services.

Tabled in Parliament last week, the report claims that the tentacles of organized crime have penetrated the top levels of public institutions across the country, reports Mediafax.

The agency’s assessment, which comes amid a nationwide crackdown on corruption, points the finger at misbehaving magistrates, police officers, court clerks, notaries and liquidators who act together in a dark web of mutually beneficial relationships, corroding the delivery of justice and working on behalf of criminals rather than in the public interest, Mediafax reports.

The document also notes that fraud is rife in public health services due to insufficient resources and abuse by management.

It also claims that one of the most significant threats to the public good comes from cross-border criminal activities, according to local news agency Actmedia.

Along national borders, powerful smuggling rings are reported to have exploited illegal migration paths and, on a smaller-scale, drug trafficking routes.

The report will be debated by a special parliamentary committee.