Irina Vlah, President of the Republican Party Inima Moldovei, stated that “the former head of the EU Mission will be remembered in the history of our relations with the European Union as someone who echoed the lies of the PAS regime about ‘successes’ that the people of Moldova never saw. The new head of the EU Mission, Iwona Piorko, now has the chance to change everything. Her actions will reveal whether she stands with the people of Moldova or with Sandu’s dictatorship.”
Thus, Irina Vlah addressed an open letter to Iwona Piorko.

The politician expressed hope that the new EU Delegation mandate will not be a mere formality, “as it was with her predecessor, but will bring real benefit.”

Open Letter to Iwona Piorko, New Head of the EU Delegation to Moldova: 

„Dear Madam Iwona Piorko,

I hope your mandate will not become a formality, as was the case with your predecessor, but will bring real benefit. You are assuming office at one of the most troubling moments for Moldova — and that is precisely why I am addressing you publicly. You must know: the real situation in the country is different from what the authorities will report to you. Behind the façade of “stability” lie serious problems, public anxiety, and the voice of the opposition — a voice that is being silenced. If your mission is to support democracy, then that voice must be heard from the very beginning.

What is the Republic of Moldova today? A state captured by a criminal political group, hiding its true nature behind a mask of supposed democracy. There is almost nothing left of what defines a democratic rule-of-law state. Citizens’ rights and freedoms are trampled, true opposition is constantly persecuted, independent media are destroyed or intimidated, the justice system is broken, and all state institutions (Prosecutor’s Office, Police, Intelligence and Security Service, Constitutional Court, Central Electoral Commission, etc.) are under political control and used to serve the interests of the ruling party. Amid a growing dictatorship, the economy is collapsing, and poverty is rising rapidly. Most alarming is that more and more citizens are leaving the country for good, no longer seeing a future here. In the past four years alone, around 300,000 people have left Moldova — a true catastrophe for such a small country.

Dear Madam Piorko,

You won’t hear any of this from the officials you’ll meet as you take office. They will speak beautifully about the “remarkable successes” on the path to EU integration. But if you truly want to know the truth, I urge you to visit Moldova’s villages and speak directly with ordinary people — not those handpicked by the government for staged meetings, but those who are barely surviving. I also urge you to maintain an open and ongoing dialogue with the opposition, to gain a full picture of what is happening in the country.

I do not wish to criticize or reproach, but your predecessor, Janis Mazeiks, preferred to receive information only from official sources, and as a result, often found himself in uncomfortable situations. His “famous” statement about the success of judicial reform shocked most Moldovan citizens, who deal with the justice system firsthand and know how much it has deteriorated. To his credit, at the end of his mandate, Mr. Mazeiks did speak some truth about Moldova’s EU accession prospects. While Prime Minister Dorin Recean misleads the public with promises of accession by 2028, and President Maia Sandu by 2027, Mr. Mazeiks admitted that it might happen in 2030 — though even that is uncertain.

I sincerely hope, Madam Iwona Piorko, that your mandate will be far more successful than Mr. Mazeiks’s, and that you will be remembered by the citizens of the Republic of Moldova for serious actions, not for rushed statements about “judicial reform success.” But for that to happen, you must hear the voice of the people and the opposition, know the truth about the real situation, and offer objective assessments — not ones driven by narrow interests.

In short, Madam Iwona Piorko, stand with the people of the Republic of Moldova — not with Maia Sandu’s dictatorial regime!

Respectfully,
Irina Vlah
President of the Republican Party Inima Moldovei”.