Kovesi might notify the EC on the whistleblowing law

The head of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office, Laura Codruța Kovesi, announced in a press release on Thursday, that she is analyzing a possible notification to the European Commission for activating the mechanism for conditioning European funds by the rule of law in Romania. The reason: because of the way in which the EU Whistleblowing Directive has been transposed.

“The main cause for concern is that these provisions could have a demobilizing effect, discouraging potential whistleblowers in Romania and adversely affecting the level of fraud detection in the EU. De facto, this would lead to a deterioration of the existing system which ensures the proper functioning of the investigation and prosecution services with regard to the investigation and prosecution of fraud, including tax fraud, corruption or other breaches of Union law related to the execution of the Union budget or the protection of the financial interests of the Union “, reads the European Public Prosecutor’s Office statement, as quoted by g4media.ro.

The Parliament voted on Wednesday, during the visit of the Vice President of the European Commission, Vera Jourova, to Bucharest a bill that transposes the EU Whistleblowing Directive.

The normative act is harshly criticized by NGOs on the grounds that it discourages the reporting of acts of corruption and non-compliance with the law.

Another reason why Kovesi announces that it is examining the possibility of notifying the European Commission regarding the activation of the funds conditionality mechanism is the fact that the European Public Prosecutor’s Office has not yet received the 9 delegated prosecutors in addition to those already appointed and that “there has been a considerable delay in providing the Romanian EPPO office with an adequate number of judicial police officers in support of its operations”.