Basescu appoints former World Bank expert as prime minister in Romania

President assigns senior economist the task of heading coalition government

By Alison Mutler - The Associated Press

BUCHAREST – Former World Bank economist Theodor Stolojan was chosen yesterday as Romania’s next prime minister.

President Traian Basescu asked the 65-year-old financial expert to form a coalition government – as the country struggles with the effects of the global financial crisis.

“My mission in the next 10 days is to form... a government and a program under the new conditions that exist in Romania as a result of the global economic crisis and economic recession in the developed countries,” Stolojan said.

Stolojan – currently a lawmaker in the European Parliament – said he would form a cabinet including his party, the Democratic Liberals, as well as the left-leaning Social Democrats and the party that represents Romania’s 1.4 million ethnic Hungarians. Together the three parties control almost 80 percent of parliament.

Social Democrat leader Mircea Geoana said, however, that his party would not participate if the Hungarian party was also in government.

Stolojan said his government would have two “urgent missions” – to draft a 2009 budget and relaunch reforms in education, health and public administration.

Democratic Liberal leader Emil Boc said the government would retain a flat tax and give welfare benefits to those on low incomes and retirees. “The left and right together can resolve Romanians’ problems,” he said.

Parliament will vote December 22 on Stolojan’s proposed government. It replaces the center-right Liberal-led government that lost elections. “Romania needs a strong prime minister... who knows how to fully use European funds to benefit Romanian citizens and who will fight against corruption with all means available,” said Joseph Daul, chairman of the conservative European People’s Party in the European Parliament, of which Stolojan is a member.

Stolojan was Romania’s finance minister in 1990-91, its prime minister in 1991-92 and an economic and senior economist at the World Bank in Washington from 1992 to 1998.

As Romanian finance minister he headed the country’s privatization agency, and was criticized for forcing companies and individuals to convert their hard currency into Romanian lei at a fixed rate.