Romanian prime minister picks MEP as new Commission nominee
Romanian prime minister picks MEP as new Commission nominee

Romanian prime minister picks MEP as new Commission nominee

MEP Dan Nica is one of the Romanian picks for the European Commission | Philippe Buissin/European Union

Romanian prime minister picks MEP as new Commission nominee

Dan Nica proposed as Rovana Plumb’s replacement, with Melania-Gabriela Ciot in reserve.

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The Romanian government will put forward two names for the new European Commission to replace Rovana Plumb, a Romanian government official said.

Bucharest’s choices are center-left MEP Dan Nica and Secretary of State for European Affairs Melania-Gabriela Ciot, the official said.

However, Romanian Prime Minister Viorica Dăncilă said Tuesday evening that Nica is Romania’s pick and that, “if a woman is required,” Ciot will be proposed. For now, Ciot is Romania’s reserve choice, she said.

Nica was put forward for the role in the summer alongside Plumb, but President-elect Ursula von der Leyen picked Plumb. However, the European Parliament’s Legal Affairs Committee rejected Plumb, who was slated to get the transport portfolio.

At a closed-door meeting of the Parliament committee in Brussels on Monday, MEPs voted by 13 to 7 to reject Plumb as “unable to exercise” her functions as commissioner. Plumb was called before the committee last week to account for two loans worth nearly €1 million that she did not declare in her original financial declaration scrutinized by MEPs.

Nica is a second-term MEP from the governing Social Democrats (PSD) and a former deputy prime minister and communications and internal affairs minister.

He was accused by Romanian corruption prosecutors of abuse of office when he was a communications minister, between 2003 and 2004, for deciding to lease Microsoft licenses from one provider, without opening a public procurement procedure, as required by law. However, the case was dropped because he was indicted after the statute of limitations expired.

Ciot’s name was suggested during a meeting of the Social Democrats’ executive committee on Tuesday afternoon. She’s been a secretary of state for European affairs at Romania’s foreign ministry for the past two years, according to her official biography.

Authors:
Carmen Paun 

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