Romanian President Klaus Iohannis has finally signed the decree dismissing the head of the National Anticorruption Directorate (DNA), Laura Codruta Kovesi, as requested by the Constitutional Court at the end of May, the presidency’s spokesperson announced on July 9.

The decision is expected to alleviate tensions on the Romanian political scene, as the ruling coalition is now likely to drop its plans to suspend the president. However, Romania’s determination to fight high-level corruption will depend on the next management of the DNA and its political independence.

The removal of Kovesi, the iconic figurehead of Romania’s fight against corruption, represents another step in the ruling coalition’s overhaul of the justice system and criminal legislation in Romania that some critics say is intended to protect leading politicians from justice. Recently adopted changes to criminal legislation have been harshly criticised for weakening the anti-corruption fight in the country, by Romanian magistrates, the EC and the country’s international partners in addition to many Romanians.

The president’s decision came amid discussions within the ruling coalition over the possibility of suspending him for not respecting the Constitutional Court ruling. The decision is likely to ease tensions between the president and the ruling coalition, at least for the moment, as the Social Democratic Party (PSD) and Alliance of Liberals and Democrats (Alde) do not have any other tangible reason to try to impeach him. 

However, tensions are likely to continue over the adoption of the changes to criminal legislation, as the president has already announced he will challenge them at the Constitutional Court. The PSD leader Liviu Dragnea is one of the beneficiaries of the bill amending the criminal code, which would help him avoid a prison sentence issued in a recent court ruling. 

“The president of Romania, Mr. Klaus Iohannis, considers that Romania cannot take steps backwards from the status of country where the law rules and the supremacy of the Constitution is respected. In Romania, the fight against corruption should not be diminished or blocked in any way,” the presidency’s spokeswoman, Madalina Dobrovolschi, said.

“In a state governed by the rule of law, all the decisions of the Constitutional Court should be respected,” the presidency said, adding that the new head of the DNA will have the obligation to do his/her job professionally.”

In response, Kovesi said she will leave the DNA and will remain a prosecutor, noting that the revocation leaves “a big question mark on whether there will be a discretionary subordination of chief prosecutors to the justice minister”.

“It is common sense to see that the political will is to block investigations, to block justice,” Kovesi said.

The government led by the PSD has long been seeking to remove Kovesi, under whose leadership numerous corruption probes were launched into party members. Dragnea was recently convicted to three years and six month imprisonment for instigation to abuse of office, though he has the chance to appeal the sentence. He had already received a two-year suspended sentence for voter manipulation.

The procedure to remove Kovesi was initiated in February by Justice Minister Tudorel Toader over alleged misconduct within the agency. After Iohannis refused to endorse the government’s request to dismiss Kovesi. Romania’s government appealed to the Constitutional Court, which ruled on May 30 that Iohannis should dismiss the head of the DNA. Kovesi has repeatedly rejected Toader's accusations, while Romania’s magistrates body, the CSM, issued a negative review of Toader’s request to dismiss her back in February.

Under Kovesi’s management, the DNA has achieved important results in fighting corruption, indicting and sending to prison former MPs, ministers and mayors. Last year alone, the DNA sent to trial 997 defendants, including three ministers, a former head of the Chamber of Deputies, and six MPs. The number of cases completed by DNA prosecutors increased by 16.5% y/y to more than 3,800 in 2017. At the same time, the institution sent 189 people to trial for abuse of office, an offence the Romanian parliament voted to partially decriminalise last week.

A report of the activity of the DNA under Kovei’s leadership will be soon published by the institution.

Kovesi’s activity has repeatedly been praised in European Commission reports on the Southeast European country. She also enjoys public support in the country, where thousands of people took to the streets in large numbers last year to show their support for the anti-corruption fight.

On the other hand, the DNA has been criticised for alleged abuses and has recently been involved in a scandal related to its protocols with the intelligence services and the alleged fabrication of evidence at the Ploiesti local office. Its effectiveness was also called into question when it failed to secure convictions for high-profile officials in recent cases starting with the collapse of one of Romania’s biggest ever corruption cases (dubbed the Microsoft case) on a technicality.

A former basketball player, Kovesi became head of the DNA in 2013. Prior to this she had held the post of general prosecutor between 2006 and 2012 and was the first woman and the youngest prosecutor general in Romania.