Cannes: Prix France Culture Cinéma 2016 Goes To Romanian Director Alexander Nanau
Prix France Culture Cinéma, the annual award given by Radio France Culture, was today taken by the Romanian director Alexander Nanau for his documentary film ‘Toto and his sisters’ (Toto si surorile lui).
The award represents the best movie launched in French cinemas in the past year. The movie will be also available on DVD in France starting May 17.
In 2015, ‘Toto and his sisters’ was nominated at the Best Documentary Section at European Film Award and received US Cinema Eye Honors’ Spotlight Award 2016. In one year and a half since its launching at San Sebastian Film Festival in 2014, Alexander Nanau’s documentary was awarded with more than 30 prizes in festivals such as Sarajevo Film Festival, Varsovia International Film Festival, Leipzig DOK, Zurich Film Festival, Camden International Film Festival, Munich Open City Docs Fest etc. (Evenimentul Zilei)
Basescu Says Tax Authority Ought To Publish State’s Debts Too
Romania’ former president Traian Basescu said, in a posting on his Facebook page, that if the country’s tax authority ANAF wants to be fair, then it must also publish a list of state’s debts to companies and individuals.
Basescu wrote on Sunday on his Facebook page the following: 1. ANAF has published a list of companies with debts to the state. It is correct. 2. The list of individuals with debts to the state is to be published. It is correct. 3. If ANAF wants to be correct all the way, it must also publish a list of state’s debts to companies and individuals (e.g.: debts in terms of VAT refunds, non-payment of subsidies to farmers, lawsuits lost by the state vs. Romanian companies, lawsuits lost by the state on salary rights or compensation for the ECHR rulings, reimbursements set by courts on the abusive collection of the environmental tax paid by car owners etc). So it would be fair.’
On May 11, the tax authority published the list of small debtors to the general consolidated budget, which shows that 144,829 small taxpayers and public institutions had debts bigger than RON10,000 on March 31, 2016. (Evenimentul Zilei)
CET Govora Goes Insolvent
Coal and power producer CET Govora, the largest energy producer in Valcea county, went insolvent at the beginning of May 2016.
The company’s financial and economic situation has worsened over the last years. Lawyer Remus Borza, the representative of the company’s judicial administrator Euro Insol, who has also been handling Hidrolectrica’s insolvency over the past years, said all contracted concluded by CET Govora in the past years will be thoroughly analysed to check their legality. Borza added that layoffs and wage cuts are also inevitable.
CET Govora currently has some 1,600 employees. The Valcea County Council is the sole shareholder of CET Govora.
CET Govora has debts worth nearly EUR200 million to energy holding CE Oltenia, among others. In 2015, Romania’s Energy Ministry transferred mines Aluni and Berbesti in Valcea county from energy holding CE Oltenia to coal and power producer CET Govora, in the account of the historical debts between the two state companies. (Puterea)
Tariceanu Says ALDE Backs Changes To Chamber Of Deputies’ Regulation
Calin Popescu Tariceanu, co-chair of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE), said his party endorses amendments to the regulation of the Chamber of Deputies
Tariceanu also said Chamber Speaker Valeriu Zgonea should have stepped down along with the withdrawal of his political support.
Bogdan Niculescu-Duvaz, head of the statute committee, said the statute allows Zgonea’s revocation from the position of president of the Chamber of Deputies. Duvaz also said the standing offices are to take note of Zgonea’s no longer enjoying political support and the latter’s revocation will be announced in plenum, without being put to a vote. (Puterea)
Basescu Says US Ambassador Klemm Was Wrong To Visit Zgonea
Romania’s former president Traian Basescu believes U.S. Ambassador to Romania, Hans Klemm, was wrong to visit Chamber of Deputies Speaker Valeriu Zgonea.
Basescu pointed out that Klemm’s visiting a politician like Zgonea was a huge mistake, because the ambassador simply turned into a lobbyist, which, in Romania, is called influence peddling.
On May 13, Klemm met with Zgonea to congratulate him for the way he ran the Romanian Chamber of Deputies.
The head of the Social Democratic Party (PSD), Liviu Dragnea, and former prime minister Victor Ponta, have recently teamed up again and announced various joint plans. One of their plans is to oust Chamber of Deputies Speaker Valeriu Zgonea and replace him with Ponta. (Adevarul)