Iohannis on National Culture Day: I am perfectly aware of the 2016 expectations

President Klaus Iohannis said on Friday he is “perfectly aware as president” of the 2016 expectations, arguing that Romania has been affected for years by nepotism, clientelism, disregard to law, to the one’s word and by the contempt for school and culture.

“I heard analyses and evaluations for 2016, about how fierce the electoral fight is going to be, about the challenges that we all have to meet- the president, the state institutions, parties and civil society. As president, I am perfectly aware of the 2016 expectations, but I don’t look at them worriedly, but with faith and responsibility. I hope all political actors will treat these expectations with the same responsibility,” Iohannis said in the speech delivered on the National Culture Day.

He added that “for years, the clientelism, nepotism, the disregard for laws and for the one’s word, the contempt for school, culture and spiritual values have been unreservedly displayed, and more, they have impregnated the public image with what means to be successful in life, career and particularly in politics.”

According to the Romania’s president, what can make 2016 special are not the upcoming elections, but the start of the society’s getting back to values. He pointed out we need a culture of success based on “performance, work, talent, honesty and integrity.” “This is another expression of the cultivated Romania’s project to which I want to dedicate the year of 2016,” Iohannis said.

Talking about culture in particular, the President noted the Romanian culture is very fragile.

“We have a fragile cultural infrastructure; we failed to take care of it in due time, and we allowed the cultural acts to unfold in improper venues, with ever smaller and poorly motivated staff, in inadequate conditions, on an ‘let it be’ principle. It is time to change the situation, as it does not honour the Romanian culture. This involves firstly the will to promote and support culture in all its expressions, a long-term projection aiming equally at the human and material resources, a strategy marked both by responsible decision and by overall system continuity and cohesion,” the President told the Romanian Academy on the National Culture Day.

He pointed out Romanian culture’s paradoxes and contrasts: “On one hand, we have films awarded internationally and a record that should really make us proud; on the other hand, a network of public cinemas unable to take over their release. We find the same contrast between the international prestige of playwriting and the theatres hosted in buildings at earthquake risk, between the exceptional heritage and the museums closing because the lack of premises or staff, between the remarkable historical monuments and the insufficient budgets allocated to their maintenance or restoration.”