Why should I resign? I have not been on any plane chartered by Nordis

Asked, on Antena 3 CNN, about the fact that he is being asked to resign, Ciolacu answered: “Should I resign for what or why should I resign? I don’t understand. We are talking here about, if it were such a trip, we are talking about a trip of mine in the private area. On my private money, with payments from my personal account. (…) I have not seen any document attesting that that plane was leased by a specific company. I didn’t see. I am put, during an election campaign, once again, in front of a powerlessness of some counter-candidates, who keep calling on each other to unite against someone. I saw where these unions led against someone for 20 years, especially in the last mandate of Mr. Iohannis”.

Ciolacu then referred to the questions received by President Iohannis, noting that there is a question of public money: “I remember that Mr. Ciucă was also asked about public money expenses regarding the advertisement for his lordship’s book. I understood that there we are talking about 2 million euros of public money.
That is, from my money and from your money and that of other Romanians. Am I being asked to resign for an expenditure of private money? For a suspicion? I think they forgot the purpose of an election campaign”.

Ciolacu: I have not been on any plane chartered by Nordis

“I have not been on any plane chartered by Nordis. I paid for all the trips, all the vacations, mine and my family’s, all the restaurant meals myself or we each paid according to how much we consumed. I have never gone on anyone’s money, on any trip, on any vacation, neither I nor any member of my family. It is an election campaign theme. I have no idea. What did I do with the private money? I also asked my son and the whole family, I also asked the bank to remove all my bank statements, I will look for it tonight when I get home. All invoices, all receipts. But, I repeat, we are talking about my private life. We are now talking about my private life, my private money and my family. I want to see Mr. Ciucă’s invoices from the billboards, to a private book. I want to see the public money expenses of Mr. Iohannis, how much the trips cost. (…) Let Mr. Iohannis come out and say what he did in Africa, in his travels from Africa and where he was”, stated Ciolacu.

“Now, being politically impotent, they are trying to attack me. He will do it. (…) I don’t come from a nursery school to complain either. I know the political game, I understand. Every time I go abroad, an article appears,” says the prime minister.

Marcel Ciolacu claimed that his money was controlled by ANI and demands another control over his payments and income: “Others have spent millions of euros of public money and now they are asking me to resign. Wouldn’t they still want to put the public money they spent into personal interests and promote their personal books, put it back and give it to the Romanian state?”.

Ciolacu: I never did anything illegal!

“When you don’t have projects and solutions for the country, the easiest way is to attack with lies and dirt. This is what the election campaign turned into, a continuous attack on me and my family! And I can’t help but think how much damage I’ve done to my family, with all this continuous pressure put on every member of the family! To be clear: I have never done anything illegal! I made a gift to my son, paid for out of my own money, with bills and receipts to prove it. And I always paid for my vacations! Indeed, the one who is asking me to withdraw now, Mr. Ciucă, he gave 4 million euros on his own book, from public money! And he “forgot” to ask his protector, Mr. Iohannis, who – for 10 years – traveled freely and secretly on private planes, paid for by public money, on luxury vacations in exotic countries. I’m sure that Romanians want to know what will happen in the future, where this country is heading and what solutions each candidate has to face the challenges – especially economic ones, which the whole of Europe is facing,” Marcel Ciolacu later posted on Facebook.

(source: AFP)