Renato Usatii, leader of the Our Party, made his first statements after the conclusion of Parliament’s closed-door session on Thursday, October 8. The lawmaker said he had heard nothing that needed to be hidden from the public. He also claimed that foreign intelligence services may have known about the document before Moldovan lawmakers did.
“But I did not understand why today’s parliamentary session was classified as secret. I took part in the discussions. I heard nothing that should be hidden from citizens. Absolutely nothing! If the purpose was to prevent information leaks, the situation is even more ridiculous. Some MPs frequently travel to Moscow. Others travel to the West. And I am almost certain that foreign intelligence services knew about the document before we saw it in Parliament. So what was the point of this whole secrecy show?” the politician said.
According to the lawmaker, the discussions focused on modernizing the army, an initiative he supports.
However, the Our Party leader reiterated that if the purpose of the closed-door session was to prevent information leaks, the situation was “even more ridiculous.”
“I got the impression that the Ministry of Defense wanted to demonstrate how important and secret the plan it had developed was. The discussion was about modernizing the army. It is something necessary, and I support it. But I saw nothing that would justify keeping the entire session secret. The first secret parliamentary session in the last ten years. And for what?
“I believe people have the right to know what is happening in their country, especially when it concerns national security. Modernizing the army is necessary. But keeping things secret without a clear justification does not mean modernization,” Renato Usatii added.
Parliament held a closed-door session on Thursday, October 8. Lawmakers were checked to ensure they were not carrying recording devices, while printed copies of the draft were provided to them before the discussions. The printed document is to be destroyed after the meeting.