Some directors and bosses who hold tight to power are trying, today, to manipulate a real reform of Romsilva, which actually means protecting forests, declared on Wednesday the Minister of Environment, Waters and Forests, Diana Buzoianu, in a press conference, organized during the protest of the Silva Forestry Union Federation.
„The one who was screaming into the microphone in front of me (the president of the Silva Federation, Silviu Geană, n.r.), to the simple question „Can you give me the microphone so I can address a message to them?”, (…) he clung to the microphone with his claws, a man who says he comes to dialogue, but who clung to the microphone with his claws so that the minister’s message wouldn’t reach the people. The truth cannot be hidden. I know that these days they are manipulating everything they have to manipulate. I know that these days they are sending emails to all the branches every day. I know that these days they are communicating with these people as if they were numbers. A few days ago, they sent an address, a paper, to urgently bring 25 people from each county. For them, these are the foresters, guards, lawyers, accountants that they brought here. They are numbers. I want to transform them into people with a mission. Without that microphone, obviously the messages could not be carried and, in fact, this is the symbol of what Romsilva has become today. Some so-called leaders, some directors and some bosses who hold power tightly, tight communication with all the foresters and are trying to manipulate a real reform that actually means protecting the forests, which actually means reducing the number of positions for bosses,” said Buzoianu.
She also conveyed that at the moment there is only one ally that people of good faith in Romsilva can have for reform, namely the minister who has undertaken a real reform.
„I was prepared to call seven representatives of the Forestry Districts, seven representatives of the Forestry Directorates. Without bosses, without directors, without leaders, but people from the grassroots, who would have come to work and who do the real work. Let them come and talk about their real concerns, about the reform and explain to them why the reform is actually for them. People of good faith need this reform (…) I think we all deserve to know whether the future director elected by the Board of Directors (of Romsilva, ed.) supports or blocks the Romsilva reform, and because, in the coming period, the interim mandates of the directors of the county forestry directorates are about to expire and the next mandates are in the hands of this interim general director. I guarantee you that if, today, I had not touched „There was no one here, in front of the directors. These people who came here, in front, are unfortunately manipulated by a management that keeps communication to itself, and does not tell them the truth, that it brought them here to demand the right of the management, to keep their pensions of 100,000 euros, their retirement bonus of 100,000 euros, warm director’s chairs, perpetually,” said the head of the Environment.
Buzoianu added that the only ones who are „in real danger of losing their jobs are the directors”, not the employees in the field. The Minister of Environment stressed, in this context, that the 12 directors who will be hired through a competition must send the signal that the shepherding of forests in the interests of certain groups is over.
„Today, Romsilva needs leaders who understand that their mission is not to turn Romsilva into an estate, but to make Romsilva a model institution that aims to preserve the forests for generations. This means that, after this reform passes, after we hire the 12 directors through a competition, for whom there will be a big uproar, because from 99 directors we have gone down to 12, they have a critical mission: to send an important signal that politics is over, turning a blind eye to environmental crimes is over, shepherding the forests in the interests of certain groups is over. Parties at forest cabins are over, all the parties held at hotels are over, which are not registered anywhere,” the Minister of the Environment said.
Several hundred representatives of the Silva Forestry Union Federation are protesting on Wednesday, between 10:00 and 14:00, in front of the Ministry of Environment, dissatisfied with the project regarding the reorganization of Romsilva.
The proposed Government decision to reorganize Romsilva aims at regionalizing forestry departments. Currently, there are 41 forestry departments, one for each county, but the project foresees 12 forestry departments.
At the same time, a 90% decrease in the number of directors is expected, under the conditions that each regional forestry directorate will have a single director. Currently, there are two to four directors at each directorate level. The reduction in the number of directors will allow for a saving of 19 million lei, money that will be used by Romsilva for forest management.
The proposed GD also contains financial efficiency measures, with the following activities to be separated: forest administration, exploitation, road maintenance and the valorization of wood products.
The Government Decision will also contain financial performance indicators, and directors and heads of districts will have minimal performance criteria. These will include: the number of training hours, the number of training activities followed, the areas of the forest fund covered by video surveillance, the identification of remarkable trees, the identification of aging islands.
On July 29, the Minister of the Environment, Diana Buzoianu, sent the report of the Control Body carried out at Romsilva to the Prosecutor’s Office attached to the High Court of Cassation and Justice.
The report’s conclusions reveal that six Forestry Directorates (Bistrita-Nasaud, Constanta, Dolj, Mehedinti, Teleorman and Tulcea) recorded large financial losses in five consecutive years, between 2020 and 2024, and another four (Caras-Severin, Gorj, Maramures and Salaj) had consistent losses in at least two consecutive years.
AGERPRES
