The campaign of the political parties for the local election held in last June was copiously financed, likewise the one for the legislative election of last November, by employees of companies which had concluded fat contracts with the State over the past years. The analysis of the financial reports submitted by the political parties to the Central Electoral Commission (CEC) during the campaign for the election of the 14^th of June 2015 has revealed that founders, managers and ordinary employees of companies which had signed procurement contracts with different State institutions are among the generous sponsors of the parties. Some of these companies have won fat contracts even during the election campaign.

During the campaign for the general election held in June of this year, the Democratic Party has spent the largest amount of money – 23,8 million lei, followed by the Party of Socialists – 18,5 million lei and “Our Party” – 13,7 million lei. The other political parties have more modest budgets: the Party of Communists – 8,2 million lei, the Liberal-Democratic Party – 6. 8 million lei, the Liberal Party – 4,6 million lei, the European People’s Party of Moldova – 2,3 million lei and “Ravnopravie” – 2,6 million lei.

These are the amounts which were officially declared to the CEC by the political parties involved in the campaign. However, the financial reports of the parties do not show the expenditures for the grandiose concerts, the informal advertisement on TV channels, for "buying" votes and other.

The budgets of the parties were made up exclusively from donations, which, as in the campaign for the legislative election of November 2014, have flooded some parties. The heaviest donations came from the representatives of business entities who had fat contracts with the State in the recent years. The reporters of the Centre for Journalistic Investigations have documented the companies whose representatives made donations in the campaign of June 2015 to the parties involved in the election race. Here is what we have discovered.

The link between donors, parties and the awarded tenders might not seem direct at first glance, but, on the other hand, the employees of several companies which had won contracts with the State in the field of transport have made generous donations exactly to the party whose member is the Minister of Transport and of Road Infrastructure, while the employees of companies which had won tenders in the field of construction have made contributions to the electoral fund of the party whose member is the Minister of the Regional Development and Construction. The picture appears even more contoured at the local level – the employees of the companies which were the winning bidders in tenders made donations to parties represented by the local government leaders.

Donors to the Democratic Party

The most beautiful picture is the one of the Democratic Party, which has received donations of tens and hundreds of thousands lei from employees of over 50 companies that benefited from contracts estimated to millions of lei from the public money.

RED Nord JSC

RED Nord JSC

The largest amount of money – 1,072,700 lei, was paid out to the budget of the Democratic Party by 50 employees of RED Nord JSC and RED Nord Vest JSC. These two State-owned joint stock companies are the main electricity distributors in the northern part of the country. The energy sector is managed by the Ministry of Economy, led by Stephane Bride – a minister proposed by the Democratic Party. According to the Public Procurement Agency, in 2013, RED Nord JSC was awarded tenders of a total value of 1,094,028 lei. Local governments of Parcova, Edinet, Briceni and Balti municipality are among the institutions with which contracts were concluded.

Moldtelecom JSC

The staff of Moldtelecom JSC donated together more than 700,000 lei. This institution is subordinated to the Ministry of Information Technology and Communication. This minister is led by Pavel Filip, a representative of the Democratic Party. During the period 2011-2015, Moldtelecom has signed contracts worth 35.8 million lei with different State institutions. The largest contract of 10 million 160 thousand lei was signed with the Ministry of Labour, Social Protection and Family, led by a Democrat, for the provision of Internet services. Contracts estimated to nearly 600 thousand lei were concluded with the National Employment Agency, which is subordinated to the Ministry of Labour, Social Protection and Family;  4 million came from the Ministry of Finance; 2,3 million - from the Register of Animals; 2,7 million - from the Security and Intelligence Service. The Centre for Investigations has already written that friends and business partners of Vitalie Iurcu, manager of Moldtelecom, were awarded, through a group of companies, tenders worth millions of lei, organized by this State-owned joint stock company, but the administration of Moldtelecom drew a veil on this issue.

Moldtelecom Director, Vitalie Iurcu, was recently appointed as the Deputy Minister of Economy, a ministry controlled by the Democratic Party.

UNIC JSC

Natalia Sanduţa, manager of UNIC department store, is a member of the Democratic Party and was among this party’s candidates for Chișinău municipal council in the campaign for 2015 local election. Nine employees of the company led by Sanduța donated together 120 thousand lei. UNIC JSC has won tenders worth 234,000 lei for the delivery of various materials and office supplies. 60 thousand lei came the company’s account from the General Prosecutor’s Office for the purchase of carpets.

Drumuri-Edinet JSC

The Democratic Party also benefited from the important donations – 100,000 lei – of three employees of Drumuri-Edineț JSC, including the company's director, Leonid Corcimari. In 2013, the State Administration of Roads launched a tender for the purchase of current repair works for the public roads in the districts of Briceni, Dondușeni, Drochia, Edineț, Fălești, Florești, Glodeni, Ocnița, Rîșcani, Sîngerei, Șoldănești. Drumuri-Edineț JSC was the winning bidder and, after concluding the contract, the accounts of the Company fattened by 1,7 million lei.

Constructorul Telenesti JSC

In the local election, Mihail Tetelea, an employee of Constructorul Telenești JSC, also made an important donation of 80 thousand lei to the Democratic Party. In 2012, Constructorul Telenești JSC signed a contract of over 305 thousand lei with the District Council of Telenești for the provision of sidewalk repair works in the village  of Mândrești. After the election of this year, a Democrat is at the helm of this village, and the Democratic Party has 10 seats in the District Council of Telenești.

Molddata JSC

An amount of 70 thousand lei was put into the money box of the Democratic Party by the employees of Molddata Company, another institution subordinated to the Ministry of Information Technology and Communication which is led by a representative of the Democratic Party. Molddata JSC concluded between 2011 and 2015 procurement contracts worth 1,622,216 lei with several State institutions. The largest amount of public money came to the budget of Molddata from the contracts signed with the General Prosecutor’s Office - about 600 thousand lei for information system administration.

Serghei Rapcea

The member of the Democratic Party, Serghei Rapcea, currently district councillor in Anenii-Noi, donated 90 thousand lei to the Democrats. In November 2014, Serghei Rapcea was among the candidates of the Democratic Party for the legislative election. In the financial reports submitted by the Democratic Party to the CEC, Serghei Rapcea stands as an employee of Gara-Auto LLC, although such a company is not registered in the data base of the State Registration Chamber (SRC). On the other hand, in November 2014, Rapcea declared he was temporarily unemployed, while, according to the data of the SRC, he was the general director of Transpremium LLC. He is also the founder of Cristehtrans LLC and the director and founder of Cristranscom LLC. Cristehtrans LLC is specialized in transport services, and also performs building renovation works. During the period 2013-2014, Cristehtrans LLC signed with the State contracts totalling 1,7 million lei. Most of the awarded tenders were organised by public institutions from Anenii Noi. In 2014, Transpremium LLC, specialized in transport services, won two contracts worth 116,227 lei, again in Anenii Noi. The third company owned by Serghei Rapcea, Cristranscom LLC, specialized in road repair, has also been awarded a number of tenders during the period 2014-2015, estimated at over 18 million lei. During the election campaign of this year, Cristranscom LLC has won a fat contract worth 1 million lei from Anenii Noi District Council. The other contracts signed in 2014 had as an object road repair works in different localities of the districts of Strășeni, Ștefan Vodă, Anenii Noi and Edineț. In all these districts, the presidents of district councils are representatives of the Democratic Party.

Oztor LLC

Valeriu Veleșcu, an employee of Oztor LLC, donated 70 thousand lei to the Democratic Party. The company which employed Veleșcu provides a wide spectrum of services – construction of buildings, construction of stadiums, renovation works, community arrangement works and even water supply services. During the period 2011-2014, the company concluded with different State institutions contracts totalling nearly 9 million lei. Among the institutions which contracted the services of Oztor LLC, to note the Implementation Unit of the Social Housing Project, an institution subordinated to the Ministry of Regional Development and Construction (led by a Democrat)  – a contract of nearly 2,3 million lei, the Civil Protection and Emergency Situations Service of the Ministry of Interior – over 1,5 million lei, Călărași District Council– 609 thousand lei, local government of  Onișcani (district of Călărași) – 176 thousand lei, local government of Bogzești (district of Telenești) – nearly 285 thousand lei and local government of Tuzara (district of Călărași) – 193 thousand lei. In the last three communities, representatives of the Democratic Party are at the helm of the village after the election.

Vaspus LLC

Vasile Pușcaș, an employee of Vaspus LLC, a company specialized in the construction of aqueducts, contributed with 60 thousand lei to the election fund of the Democratic Party. In 2011-2015, this company was awarded tenders worth 4,6 million lei. Most contracts were concluded in localities of the district of Călărași. The District Council of Călărași concluded with Vaspus LLC contracts of 1,7 million lei. In the local election, the Democratic Party won nine seats in Călărași District Council. During the period when the contracts were concluded, the Democrat Ilie Rău was the president of Călărași district. 356 thousand lei came to the accounts of Vaspus LLC from the local government of Călărași for the construction of the sewerage network. The mayor of this town is also a member of the Democratic Party.

Ranao-Transcom LLC

Alexandru Rotari, the founder and manager of Ranao-Transcom LLC was generous to the Democratic Party, donating 60 thousand lei. The company which pays him a salary has won two public tenders launched by the local government of Rezina, totalling about 424 thousand lei. One of the two contracts has been won during the election campaign, for soil works on the land adjacent to 27^th August Street, in Rezina. A Democrat held the office of mayor of Rezina at that time, and after the election a colleague from his party acceded to this position. An investigation conducted by the Centre for Journalistic Investigations points out that both procurement contracts concluded with the local government of Rezina were only partly honoured by Ranao-Transcom LLC.

Lucasciuc Igor

Another sponsor of the Democratic Party is Igor Lucașciuc, who donated 50,000 in the local election. Although he declared himself an employee of Ocniţa Railway Node, he has been working as a lawyer for Vista-Const LLC since March 2010. Just in 2014, this company won several public tenders totalling more than 300,000 lei. A month before the election held last autumn, the company won the public tender worth over 81,500 lei for the renovation of the retirement home of the village of Calarașovca, launched by the Directorate for Social Assistance and Family Protection of Ocnița. Also in 2014, "Vista-Const" provided construction materials worth 122 800 lei at the request of the Directorate for Education, Youth and Sport of Briceni. An amount of 200,000 lei of public money came to the account of "Vista-Const" in 2013.

Stilconstruct LLC

Anatolie Iașciuc, the director of Stilconstruct LLC, is another donor who was generous to the Democratic Party, donating 50,000 lei. Although this company is specialized in construction, it is among the winning bids in tenders for the supply of food products. During the period 2012-2014, Stilconstruct won five tenders totalling about 3,7 million lei. 695 thousand lei for food delivery came to the company's account from the local government of Stăuceni, where the Democratic Party won the election.

The Directorate for Education, Youth and Sport of Râşcani has fattened the company’s accounts with about 3,3 million lei.

Conplast Design LLC

Valeriu Papcov from Conplast Design LLC donated 50,000 lei to the Democrats. Since 1998, this company manufactures and sells windows, doors, stained-glass windows and shutters, various accessories. The company has won several tenders totalling 219 549 lei. The contracts were concluded with “Toma Ciorba” Clinical Hospital for Infectious Diseases and with the Culture and Tourism Department of Soroca District Council.

Podiș LLC

Podiș LLC, a supplier of construction materials, donated 50,000 lei to the budget of the Democratic Party through Trifan Druța. In 2011-2012, the company won tenders worth 638 thousand lei, most of them being contracted by the local government of Teleneşti. At that time, Trifan Druța was a councillor in the local council of Ineşti, representing the Democratic Party. In 2015, a Democrat became the mayor of this community. The Democrats also won 10 seats in the District Council of Teleneşti.

Donors to the Liberal-Democratic Party of Moldova

While in the election campaign of November 2014, the Liberal-Democratic Party had benefited from a scheme of rich donations, in the campaign for the local election of 2015 the donation scheme has considerably faded. The analysis of the financial reports shows that a part of the former donors have migrated to another political party made up of former Liberal-Democrats.

Plai Mereni LLC

Alexandru Barbaroşie from Plai Mereni LLC put 99 000 lei to the money box of the Liberal-Democratic Party. The company is specialized in bakery and it is managed by George Barbaroşie, father of Alexandru Barbăroșie. During the period 2011-2015, it concluded with various State institutions procurement contracts totalling nearly 2,5 million lei. Throughout the period when Andrei Usatîi, representative of the Liberal-Democratic Party, was the interim Minister of Health, contracts totalling 1,2 million lei were concluded with a number of institutions subordinated to the Ministry of Health. The fattest contracts were signed with the Municipal Hospital of Phthisiopneumology - 734 137 lei.

The company also had some deals with institutions subordinated to the Ministry of Education, which, by virtue of the political division, was led by a person appointed by the Liberal-Democratic Party. Over half million lei from the State budget came to the accounts of Plai Mereni for food delivery to a number of educational institutions. The fattest contracts were concluded with Vocational School No. 5 of Chișinău - 362 312 lei and with the National Sport Boarding School – 283,682 lei.

Another advantageous contract was signed with the local government of Codru, Chișinău municipality – 292,085 lei. In the local election, the battle for the mayorship of Codru was won by Vladimir Munteanu, a member of the Liberal-Democratic Party. By the way, after the local election, Alexandru Barbaroșie, the donor who made a donation of 99 thousand lei to the election fund of the Liberal-Democratic Party, became the President of Anenii Noi district.

Bias-Trans LLC

A similar amount of money - 99 thousand lei – was donated in the election campaign by Sergiu Budescu, an employee of Bias-Trans LLC. Throughout the period 2011-2014, this company received money for its transport services from different institutions of Anenii Noi. A procurement contract worth 308 thousand lei was concluded with the local government of Anenii Noi. After the election, the Liberal-Democratic Party has nine seats in the District Council of Anenii Noi and the office of president of the district.

Donors to the European People’s Party of Moldova

The European People’s Party was founded several months before the local election, consisting mostly of former members of the Liberal-Democratic Party. The analysis of the financial reports shows that not only members of this political party migrated to the new political organisation, but also some generous donors who had public procurement contracts with institutions whose heads had been promoted by the Liberal-Democratic Party.

NiRom-Roz LLC

The manager of the company NiRom-Roz LLC, Nicolae Rozembac, donated 55,525 lei to the European People’s Party.  This company is specialized in road construction and repair, and also provides roadwork services. Throughout four years, from 2011 to 2015, huge sums from the public budget fattened the company's accounts – 103,3 million lei. The fattest contracts were signed in 2011-2012 with the State Administration of Roads – 63,3 million lei. In addition to it, procurement contracts worth over 33,7 million lei were concluded either directly with the District Council of Călărași, or with different communities of this district. Just in the midst of the election campaign of 2015, the company concluded on the same day two procurement contracts for the renovation of two roads with Călărași District Council. Two other tenders worth 1,19 million lei were won by the company in 2014, and contracts were subsequently signed with the local government of Vălcineț (district of Călărași), a village where a representative of the European People’s Party won the local election. Moreover, four representatives of this party acceded to the District Council of Călărași after the election.

Maxprof Grup LLC

Another generous donor was Tudor Popescu, an employee of Max Prof Grup LLC, who donated 60 thousand lei to the European People’s Party in the election campaign. In 2012,  the Ministry of Interior purchased from „Maxprof Grup” LLC an automated integrated access system worth 764,9 thousand lei, while the website of the Ministry indicates the amount of 779 thousand lei. After this transaction, the Public Procurement Agency, the Ministry of Interior and „MaxProf Grup” LLC were sued by "Media security" LLC, a company which performs the same kind of activities and which challenged an administrative act to the court. According to the website of the Public Procurement Agency, its action was rejected.

Bass System LLC

A company whose employee Andrei Cojocari contributed with a sum of 50 thousand lei to the budget of the European People’s Party also benefited from contracts with the State. During the period 2011-2013, Bass System LLC concluded three procurement contracts totalling 28,8 million lei with State institutions. Public money coming from the Customs Service, the National Commission for Financial Markets and the Court of Accounts came to the company’s accounts for various IT equipment and services.