The Study on the Public Administration Reform in Romania Which Contributes to Reduce Corruption

ABSTRACT.This paper aims to analyze, starting from the case of Romania, the degree to which public administration reform contributes to the reduction of corruption. The research focuses also on mass media, which plays a significant positive influence on the reduction of corruption, while the behaviour of the central-level political class does not encourage the reduction of corruption. The reforming process of the central and local public administration Romania is analyzed with regard to the civil service reform, the decentralization process and fight against corruption in the public administration. A special attention is given to the studies related to the measuring of corruption and its impact on economy as a whole or as activity sectors in particular. Nevertheless, the analysis shows that the intensification of the reform process at civil service level leads to the reduction of the level of corruption.Keywords: reform process, economy, lack of transparency, decentralizationThe Romanian political system suffered profound changes from the initiation of the reform process, in 1990. The economy continues to be in a transition period through the market economy, transition that has as a result severe constraints on the activities from the whole public sector and on the central administrative system. Starting with 1990, the setting up of a modern and efficient system for the public administration was considered as a priority for the Romanian Government.The Romania's accession to the European Union required a significant reforming process of the public administration system. In order to sustain the reform process a Strategy for the Reform in Public Administration was adopted in 2004. According to this strategy, the reform of public administration is seen as a process of transformation of central and local administration to address the needs of beneficiaries and of the accession to the European Union.The 1991 Romanian Constitution, revised in 2003, institutes the three fundamental principles on which the public administration is grounded: decentralization, local autonomy, and the deconcentration of public services (Art. 120). Since 1991, several laws have been adopted in order to apply the principles of public administration. The first Law on Local Elections was adopted in 1991 and modified in 2004. The first law of public administration was adopted in 1991 (Law No. 69), and it has been abrogated by the 2001 Law of Local Public Administration.Like most countries that are undergoing a period of transition from a centralized system characterized by a quasitotalitarian influence of the state to a decentralized system, Romania has been and is still affected by corruption. During the time of preaccession to the European Union, corruption was monitored by EU special structures, nongovernmental local and foreign organizations. The effects of corruption were directly related to low levels of economic performance during this transitional period. Numerous national and international organizations noted that corruption affected Romania's economic performance on a large scale. According to Transparency International, Romania had a high level of corruption during the period following the 1 989 revolution.The Romanian public administration reform aimed at decentralization and deconcentration includes three major elements: the continuation of the decentralization process through the transfer of financial and administrative competences and responsibilities from the level of central public administration authorities to the level of local authorities; the continuation of the deconcentration process through the delegation of responsibilities locally, focusing on the local level necessities within the same administrative structure (the ministry who delegated the responsibilities is accountable for the deconcentrated services), and; the conversion of the local deconcentrated services in decentralized ones in the responsibility of the local authorities for improving their efficiency and with respect to the citizens' needs. …