Betting on Sandu: Why PAS Opts for a Cult of Personality

The ruling party, in violation of the legally established deadlines, has launched its election campaign under the banner of its de facto leader. Sandu’s achievements have become PAS’s achievements, and her campaign promises have turned into the party’s goals.

Paraphrasing the lines of futurist poet Vladimir Mayakovsky: “When we say Sandu, we mean the party; when we say the party, we mean Sandu.” This very idea became the foundation of the PR campaign launched by the ruling power on March 20. Its architects decided that, for the sake of a “new Moldovan history” and, of course, the upcoming parliamentary race the slogan about the unity of the president and her party was the only right message to send. PAS already has considerable experience in conducting unchecked political campaigning outside the bounds of the law. Well before the official start of the referendum campaign on constitutional amendments, party officials began “explaining” to the public the strategic importance of this presidential initiative. In addition to flouting the legal timeline for direct campaigning, the regime last year discarded all other formalities, making full use of its administrative resources to achieve its objectives. Moreover, during last year’s elections, Maia Sandu was officially nominated by PAS, openly defying a 2017 ruling by the Constitutional Court, which stipulated that the president must remain politically neutral: “The head of state plays the role of an arbiter, or a neutral authority, and must maintain distance from political parties. While no one can prevent the president from holding personal political views and preferences, the presidential mandate is inherently limited. The president is a key figure in the political system, but not a partisan actor.” At the time, a few voices from civil society and the legal community timidly pointed to this Constitutional Court ruling, one that stems from Moldova’s parliamentary form of government, politely urging the authorities to at least curb their use of administrative resources during election campaigns. Yet Sandu’s electoral defeat at home and the passage of the referendum «la limită» did not deter the ruling power from further trampling the law. On the contrary, these setbacks were interpreted as signs of weakness and thus, reasons to double down. This, despite the clear understanding that the sitting president remains the only real trump card in the government’s hand. The collective approval rating of PAS’s deputies doesn’t even come close. So, it came as no surprise that the current campaign has shifted toward aggressive propaganda and the full-scale exploitation of Maia Sandu’s cultivated image. Appealing to a special, almost reverential public sentiment toward the national leader – a sentiment rooted in the Soviet legacy – is not only a trendy tactic today, but a political necessity. The election of Nicusor Dan beyond the Prut, regarded in Chisinau as a landmark event and a personal achievement of the regime, only spurred further no-holds-barred political struggle. Judge for yourself. On May 20, PAS officially announced that its permanent bureau had adopted a resolution to implement the electoral program proposed by Maia Sandu last year. In other words, the president’s program will become the party’s platform for this autumn’s elections. Moreover, it turned out that a number of the elected head of state’s promises have already been fulfilled, partly by the parliament, partly by the government. These include the same manifestations of political corruption I recently wrote about: pension increases, salary bonuses for young specialists, child allowances, and free meals at schools. Speaking of children – the new initiatives now effectively allow them to take part in the election campaign. For June 1, the authorities have scheduled a large-scale event right at the state residence in Condrița. Three years ago, Maia Sandu stated that she no longer needed it, but now it has become useful. The government is allocating 420,000 lei for this grand event. It is likely that PAS’ formal leader, Igor Grosu, will exploit the occasion to recruit volunteers for the party’s election campaign, as previous calls on television and social media have not proven particularly effective. Another point of note: the day before yesterday, an official group was created with the task of informing the public about the activities of the PAS team from the president’s office, parliament, and government. On May 21, formally outside of working hours, the first hearings were held as part of this “telethon”, focusing on infrastructure and energy issues, with the participation of ministers Vladimir Bolea and Dorin Recean. Nearly all branches of power, which, in a normal democratic and legal state, should be separate. are now united by a common goal: to conduct a nationwide informational campaign for the ruling party under the slogan “Together we care about Moldova’s future”. After the press conference, several MPs immediately changed their Facebook profile covers from “Pornim vremuri bune” to the new slogan. Meanwhile, in some regions of the country, billboards with the promise of “good times” still remain. The regime has not neglected the judiciary either. Maia Sandu took the time to visit candidates for judicial and prosecutorial positions who were awaiting their diplomas at the National Institute of Justice. This institution has been headed, for the past three months, by former Romanian Member of the European Parliament Ramona Strugariu, who played a role in the dismissal of Veronica Dragalin from her position as head of the Anticorruption Prosecutor’s Office and actively worked to shield PAS from scandals related to judicial reform. Amusingly, she was appointed to the position with the personal approval of the president, without even verifying her Moldovan citizenship, which led to yet another embarrassment. Two months later, Strugariu was seen outside the presidential residence, apparently waiting for Maia Sandu to express her gratitude. All this aggressive and brazen activity – propaganda, the use of administrative resources, and the exploitation of external EU support – has become an everyday reality. There is no point in entertaining illusions that someone will wag a finger and the PAS officials will come to their senses. On the contrary, foreign partners have become the most fervent promoters of the current authorities in Chisinau, while civil society and human rights advocates, fearing the loss of funding, have shifted their focus to safer areas of work. At the time, the leadership of the Democratic Party taught the current rulers a lesson in how to fight for power by any means necessary and without a shred of shame. However, unlike the “yellow” officials, Adrian Candu and Vladimir Plahotniuc were at least willing to openly acknowledge this when faced with numerous questions from the media and civil society. Nowadays, no one even asks such questions, perhaps realizing that PAS and Sandu would not be able to answer them honestly.