Carriers request the resignation of Transport Minister Lucian Sova and threaten protests at the end of September

The Confederation of Authorized Operators and Carriers in Romania (COTAR) announced that it is requesting the resignation of Transport Minister Lucian Sova and that its members will interrupt the transport in the country for a certain period due to a legislative project initiated by the ministry.

”Employers, trade unions and federations in road transport and related activities publicly express their disapproval of the agenda of the Social Dialogue Commission on the draft Order of the Minister of Transport destroying the whole field of Road Transport. Minister Lucian Sova should resign or be dismissed after having demonstrated his incompetence on several occasions. Carriers will take to the streets, blocking the capital and interrupting transport across the country from September 25 to October 27, if the line ministry continues to fight this sector of activity through the proposed changes, ”said COTAR officials.

All employers’ organizations, federations, and syndicates in the Transport will go out on the street in protest before the Ministry of Transport in the case of the approval of the protest on September 25, 26 and 27, between 09: 00-17: 00, interrupting transport across the country, following a request lodged on September 19, 2018 at the City Hall of Bucharest.

”We are publicly apologizing to the citizens for the discomfort we will create, but this is the only alternative we have to make our requests heard,” COTAR representatives said.

About 1,000 people intend to bring 1,000 buses and coaches belonging to employers from the field of activity, regarding the transportation of people from Bucharest and from the country, intend to participate in this protest.

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The order with the problem

The complainants’ concerns are related to the item on the agenda of the Commission for Social Dialogue on the draft Order of the Minister of Transport for the modification and completion of the Methodological Norms on the application of the provisions regarding the organization and carrying out of the road transports and their related activities, Government no. 27/2011, regarding the road transport, approved by the Order of the Minister of Transports and Intrastructure no. 980/2011, as subsequently amended and supplemented.

Carriers consider inappropriately any modification of Order 980/2011 at this time and urges the removal of any discussion on the amendment of OMT 980/2011 from the agenda because it would ”destabilize the whole field of activity, affecting the transport of people, both inter-county and county.” 

”If the Draft Order of the Minister of Transport is not withdrawn, amending and supplementing the Methodological Norms on the application of the provisions regarding the organization and carrying out of the road transports and their related activities, established by the Government Ordinance no. 27/2011 on the road transports approved by the Order Minister of Transports and Intrastructure no. 980/2011, with the subsequent amendments and completions, on the agenda, we request to the Romanian Prime Minister, Mrs Viorica Dancila, the dismissal of the Transport Minister, Lucian Sova, who ignores the social dialogue and does not take into account the demands of the employers’ the federations representing the transport entrepreneurs, companies that honor their tax obligations on a monthly basis and comply with the legislation in force. The current Minister of Transport, Lucian Şova, is, in fact, the author of the 2015 legislative amendment that legalized the piracy of road transport by introducing the two permanent and repeated phrases within the Law 38 / 2003, serving interest groups who want to bury any legal business, replacing this market with one of piracy. We can see how great the interests are if the two syntagms have not been eliminated even today, although there have been dozens of promises, and their author has been named minister, ”the COTAR transmitted in a press release.

Also, the transporters are asking to change the Taxi Act, ie to repeat the phrases repeatedly and permanently, as well as the ”rent a car” activity to go to the Ministry of Transport, according to the requests repeatedly.

”We want the rent a car activity to be transferred to the ARR administration so there is better coordination and operation, thus eliminating any possibility of unauthorized activity,”” the COTAR press release said.

Carriers believe that the transport sector is currently facing a crisis situation, given the fuel price, which grew by over 18 percent over the same period last year, labor shortage, wage increases, lack of infrastructure, depreciation the domestic currency and the increase in inflation for transport services by almost 2.6 percent.

”They represent, from our point of view, the real problems of society and the Transport Minister does not militate in any way for their solution”, completes COTAR representatives.