Stella Jantuan, political scientist, ex-deputy of the Moldovan Parliament
For many years, civil society has been striving to impose sanctions against Plahotniuc, Shor and other corrupt officials of this circle. Sanctions will facilitate the task of Moldovan justice. The accounts of Plahotniuc, Shor and those who cooperate with them will be blocked. That is, it will be possible to track the flow of money and stop financing Plahotniuc's people in Moldova.
In order to understand what role both of them continue to play in the politics of Moldova, it is necessary to make a small digression into history. Plahotniuc created a system that made it possible to put all state institutions of power under control. He became the complete master of the country and turned it around as he wanted.
The scheme was similar to the schemes in the 90s – a certain political figure was put in the ministry to divert attention, and the so-called overseers were in the role of deputy ministers. All the flows from the state budget and financial flows in the form of grants that went to Moldova were controlled by these people and then transferred to the offshore accounts of several people, but in the end, Plahotniuc was the beneficiary. As a result, there was a banking scam in which a lot of money was “laundered”, and the banks belonged to Shor.
Plahotniuc was forced to flee, but the schemes and people remained. The President and the government face a difficult task, because it is very difficult to purge the state system of Plahotniuc's elements. The country has legislation that does not allow the dismissal of civil servants and the deputy minister, who are the "watchers".
When this law was adopted, the idea was that the ministers and the government could change, while the "watchers" should remain in their positions, and the law protected them. Laws are now being changed, brought back to normal, but the schemes in the economy have remained. Uprooting Plahotniuc's people from there is a difficult task. Also because justice has not yet been reformed. This complicates the process of cleansing the institutions of power. The cases of corruption that the prosecutor's office brings to the courts simply fall apart in the courts. Although Plahotniuc ran away, he still influences through his people. And the Party of Socialists, one of the largest opposition parties, is still under the influence of Plahotniuc, because he has his people everywhere “on scholarship”. They received monthly certain amounts for loyalty and for carrying out Plahotniuc's tasks in the country.
Oazu Nantoi, Member of the Moldovan Parliament from the Action and Solidarity Party
"Lenin is dead, but his cause lives on." Plahotniuc and Shor fled, but their contacts and connections in Moldova remained. Plahotniuc left behind a degrading state structure and has the opportunity to influence, including the criminal world. Today we are witnessing a scenario involving both Gazprom and representatives of the criminal world, Plahotniuc and Shor, who set themselves the task of provoking a socio-economic crisis in Moldova and destabilizing the political situation, i.e. it's a hybrid war. Shor, who is involved in the "theft of a billion" and was convicted in 2017 in the first instance, escaped through Transnistria together with Plahotniuc. Now they are trying to spin the flywheel of popular protests.
In mid-October, the Anti-Corruption Center and the police detained several couriers who had bags of cash with them, and each bag had an inscription on which district. Lumpenized sections of society are ready to participate in these pseudoacacias of protest for money.
This is a performance directed by the Kremlin and aimed at destabilizing the situation in Moldova, overthrowing the authorities and realizing Moscow's scenarios. Shor has his own benefits, because he is not interested in being wanted all over the world and not being able to use the stolen money. If, in the end, our Themis passes some kind of verdict, then Elon Shor will not want to sit out in Israel and will prefer to come to Russia.
Now there is a tough confrontation between Russia and the democratic world. US sanctions are a fairly clear gesture of political support.
Rising gas prices, the expected rise in electricity prices and inflation in Moldova provoke social depression, but there are politicians, in particular, socialists, who, on the wave of populism in the spring, said: “Maia Sandu should go to Moscow, wash Putin’s feet, drink water and bring cheap gas.
Political provocateurs are trying to spin this flywheel of supposedly popular indignation, while offering nothing but the slogan “Down with Maia Sandu!”. Today, our company Energocom signed a contract with Bulgaria on cooperation between the two countries in the field of energy supplies. The authorities are making unprecedented efforts to diversify possible gas supplies, not so much because cheap gas is waiting for us somewhere, but so that Gazprom understands that its attempts to blackmail Moldova will not lead to collapse. Yes, it will be expensive and painful, but gas will flow.