(USR) Save Romania Union welcomed, on Thursday, the start of the control of the Permanent Electoral Authority (AEP), carried out at the request of the party president, Elena Lasconi, regarding the use of USR funds between January 1 and April 16, expressing its belief that the checks will prove their spending „in observance of the law and the public interest,” whether it concerns public money, donations or private loans.

„USR guarantees that the party’s funds were spent only on Elena Lasconi’s campaign. Up until this point, in the electoral campaign, approximately 1 million lei were used from the party’s operating budget, money from the legal subsidy, for promotional actions during the period when Elena Lasconi was the candidate supported by the party. In this year’s pre-campaign, approximately 3.9 million lei,” the party stated.

According to the law, this money is not eligible for settlement, USR mentioned, which assured that „no money was directed” towards the campaign of another candidate.

„Support for another candidate, according to decisions in the party’s leadership forum, will be manifested exclusively through voluntary support, without violating the law. At the same time, we note that a significant number of donors who previously supported Elena Lasconi have announced that they will continue to support the campaign of another pro-European candidate, with real chances of entering the 2nd round,” the statement reads.

USR also informed that it „has been constantly subjected to rigorous controls” by AEP, concluded with „clear” conclusions regarding the correctness and legality of the way in which the funds were used.

USR chairwoman Elena Lasconi announced on Wednesday that she had asked the Permanent Electoral Authority to verify whether the financial resources allocated by the party in the current electoral campaign were used directly or indirectly for another candidate.

AGERPRES