Vote buying among Moldovan citizens during the presidential campaign and referendum is a concerning issue that could affect future elections. Nicoale Panfil, the program director at Promo-LEX, expressed this opinion. He warned that the illegal actions taken by the “Victory” Bloc, led by fugitive oligarch Ilan Shor, might create a dangerous precedent for the parliamentary elections in 2025 and subsequent elections.
“We have never seen a situation where someone runs an entire campaign without principles, using huge amounts of money—especially funds from abroad—not just for propaganda and campaigning, but also to bribe people. We are aware of at least seven cases like this that we have managed to uncover, and we have some details on them. I’m not talking about what the Police have reported, as we don’t have the same resources as the Police and Prosecutor’s Office. We are referring to civil monitoring, which any citizen can observe. For example, everyone in a village knows what this person is doing.”
“In principle, everyone could inform the Police, the authorities, or the candidates. For instance, if someone favors a particular candidate or party, they could report it, and the candidates could file complaints or challenges. The mechanism exists, but I regret that political parties don’t engage with it much and often ignore it. It’s as if they think it doesn’t concern them. Our citizens, who have become accustomed to this phenomenon, may ask in the upcoming elections, ‘What are you going to offer me to vote for you?’ I fear that our people will become so accustomed to these practices,” stated Nicolae Panfil during the “Teritoria Svabodi” show, broadcast on Monday, October 7, on RLIVE TV.
Nicolae Panfil also stated that individuals who receive payment from Shor to vote against Moldova’s accession to the European Union and against candidates X or Y are adding to a concerning trend in the electoral process.
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“We have attended several of these events to observe the discussions and offerings. Unfortunately, the organizers know how to structure these meetings effectively and have considerable experience. As for the police estimate of about 130,000 cases, I find it difficult to comment. We recognize that the ‘Victory’ Bloc operates on a network basis, where each participant recruits 5 to 10 more people, leading to an approximate tally of these incidents. However, the scale of this operation is alarming and poses a serious threat to democracy in Moldova,” Panfil concluded.
We remind you that 130,000 Moldovan voters received money from the criminal group led by pro-Russian fugitive oligarch Ilan Shor, who is sheltered by the Kremlin, to vote against the constitutional referendum on Moldova’s accession to the EU. The funds were transferred from Russia through a bank listed under international sanctions. Local leaders receive a monthly payment equivalent to 45,000 lei.
The head of the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office warned Moldovans involved or tempted to get involved risk losing their assets equivalent to the money transferred by the fugitive politician or even facing imprisonment.