PSRM presidential candidate Alexandr Stoianoglo was asked by PAS counter-candidate Maia Sandu during the electoral debates on Sunday, October 27, at the Palace of the Republic, whether he still believes that there was money in the “bag” that socialist Igor Dodon received from former PDM leader, the fugitive Vladimir Plahotniuc when he was President of the Republic of Moldova. “It’s not important whether it was money or not,” was the former prosecutor general’s response.
“Dodon and the PSRM have nominated you for president. I want to ask if you still claim that the “bag” Plahotniuc gave to Dodon contained money?” Maia Sandu asked him.
Maia Sandu asked Stoianoglo to clarify his 2021 statement as prosecutor general, where he suggested that Plahotniuc likely sent money to Dodon. He explained, “Unfortunately, there is a recurring confusion between the duties of the president and those of prosecutors. Prosecutors can only investigate criminal cases based on sufficient evidence that establishes reasonable suspicion—not on political statements. Whether money was involved is irrelevant; what matters is that authorities initiated the case unlawfully. All operational actions occurred outside the criminal process, making them illegal and inadmissible as evidence. I am certain it was on your orders that this case was initiated and brought to court.”
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Igor Dodon had a general reaction to the election debates. “The calm and poise of a Man of Law against the aggressiveness and populism of a president who, after four disastrous years for the country, does not want to admit any mistakes and abuses. On November three, we will elect the Man of the Law instead of a person who considers himself above the law and the Constitution,” he commented.
In the widely discussed “bag” case, Igor Dodon faces accusations of promoting the interests of Vladimir Plahotniuc and Sergei Iaralov, who allegedly led a criminal organization with aims to control Moldova’s political, social, and economic processes. Dodon is accused of demanding and accepting sums between $600,000 and $1 million from them, allegedly to cover the Party of Socialists’ operational expenses, including staff salaries.
Igor Dodon pleads not guilty.