Alexander Petkov
Reform requires a national consensus
“Local government reform is necessary, but it needs consensus,” he said for Logos Press. – I am not talking about absolute approval, but about a national consensus on this issue. It is safe to say that there is none, and what we are seeing is completely different from what was previously discussed.”
He recalled that the current government initially supported the elimination of district councils and administrations, but now these structures remain, albeit in reduced numbers, without clear explanations of the reasons for this decision. “No one knows for what reasons the districts remain, we can only speculate,” remarked the mayor of Balti municipality.
He emphasized that the country’s success in the European integration period can only be built on the success of each locality. “From the totality of all positive results at the local level, a good perspective at the national level is built. Unfortunately, the current reform concept leaves more questions than answers,” he said.
Balti is excluded from the voluntary association process
One of them concerns the municipality of Balti, which is inexplicably excluded from the voluntary unification process. Petkov pointed out that the settlements around the town, which have been seeking to be part of the municipality for about ten years, can be united with other villages, but not with Balti, as they are part of the neighboring districts.
“In order to join Balti, they need to get permission from the district council,” Petkov explained. – Why neighboring settlements are deprived of such an opportunity, although their residents have been working here for a long time, studying and using various services of the city, is unclear.”
For example, the village of Hesnashen Noi belongs to the Drochia district, although they don’t even have a transportation link to Drochia. Most of its residents work in the “northern capital”, there is a decision of the local council, which was sent to the municipal council of Balti to join. But Chisinau does not allow voluntary amalgamation because the village is administratively part of Drochia district. I say once again that this reform is poorly thought out, although it should have provided for different situations and options”.
According to Alexander Petkov, the consultation procedure organized by the government was formal and did not provide clear answers. “We were told that we would get answers in February, then in March, and even now we do not have all the answers,” he concluded.
