Olesea Stamate, Chairwoman of the Committee on Legal Affairs, Appointments and Immunities, has announced that she is resigning and will no longer hold the position as of 1 February. Stamate, who is an MP on the ruling party’s list, says she intends to focus “more on legislative creation, leaving organisational processes behind”.

The announcement was made a few minutes ago on her Facebook page. The MP says she will continue to offer “full support for justice reform, both in this Committee on Legal Affairs, Appointments and Immunities and in any other format of activity”.

UPDATE 17:51 Parliament Speaker Igor Grosu said on Facebook that the request for Olesa Stamate’s resignation as chairwoman of the Committee on Legal Affairs, Appointments and Immunities was submitted on 16 January.

“(…) In the context of the organisation of parliamentary work in this session, I will make more announcements and come back with details next week,” he said.

We reproduce below PAS MP Olesea Stamate’s full message:

“A developed country with functioning state institutions, prosperous businesses and citizens confident about tomorrow can only exist if a free, fair and professional justice system is functioning. I am absolutely sure that the Republic of Moldova can advance on the path of European integration and join the family of civilised and economically advanced countries only with a healthy justice system, with honest, honest and professional prosecutors and judges who are guided in their work only by the law.

I believed, I believe and I will always believe that we can succeed in this mission, as many other countries have succeeded, where judicial decisions are rarely questioned by the citizens, and where the business community has the certainty that it will be protected in court in the event of abuses or injustices against them. I also believe in a society where crime, especially corruption, is discouraged. Whether it is corruption big or small.

It sounds idealistic, but if others have succeeded, I am confident that we can achieve that model of justice that the vast majority of citizens trust. I am glad that in recent years I have been part of a team of people who have the same aspirations as I do – to build a justice system in the interest of the citizen, in defence of the state, but not of the corrupt, the criminals and the lobbyists. I recognise that this is a complicated, long and difficult process. But once this cleansing mechanism is in place, it will be completed.

Over time, society, the people of this country, and foreign investors will enjoy the results of the reforms initiated a few years ago. Change does not happen overnight, like in fairy tales, with a magic wand. It takes time, dedicated people and a lot of effort. But the end – justice as the absolute majority of citizens want it – objective, principled, will be achieved. The important thing is that we are on this irreversible path.

The last few years have been fully dedicated to the public interest, in particular to modernising the justice sector. I led the Ministry of Justice, consulted the President of the Republic of Moldova, Maia Sandu, and from 2021, I will lead the Legal, Appointments and Immunities Committee of the Parliament. Good things are done through hard work and dedication, and together with my team members. Every beginning has an end, which I personally see as a transformation, a transition to a new stage. I have taken the decision to step down as Chairman of the Committee on Legal Affairs, Appointments and Immunities as of 1 February. I intend to focus more on legislative creation, giving up organisational processes. It is also an opportunity to devote more time to children and family.

I would also like to take this opportunity to thank all the members of the committee, irrespective of political affiliation. Even if we sometimes had different opinions when examining draft laws, we always had the maturity, as a team, to listen to and understand each point of view expressed. I would like to thank my colleagues in the secretariat of the legal committee for their professionalism and dedication. They are the ones who carry the heavy burden of legislative creation, and if you look at the statistics – their workload has practically doubled compared to previous legislatures.

Throughout our work, we have had a beautiful collaboration with civil society, development partners, business and justice professionals – and I thank them for their valuable contribution to the work of the committee. Without them, we would not have been able to achieve so many important things/laws for our country. I will continue to give my full support to justice reform, both in this Committee and in any other format of work. I will be faithful to my belief that Moldova must have an objective, professional justice system that acts in the interest of the citizen, defending and protecting the law of our state. I am sure we will succeed!”, said Olesea Stamate.

Olesea Stamate is a lawyer by profession and Vice-President of PAS. She headed the Ministry of Justice during Maia Sandu’s tenure as head of government, and was later the PAS candidate in the elections for the 38th constituency, Hincesti, but was defeated by the Socialist candidate Stefan Gaccan. Before entering politics, Stamate headed the Association for Efficient and Responsible Government for five years, where she is a founding member. She later served as the head of state’s adviser on justice.