Romanian Public Administration Reform – Between the Modernization Aspirations and Real Possibilities of Achievement

Cristina Elena Nicolescu[1],

National School of Political Studies and Public Administration, Romania

Abstract

The reform stages known by the Romanian public administration after the 1989 Revolution reflected the modifications occurred in the economic and social-political context of the state, by passing from communism to capitalism, from the planned, centralized economy, to the market economy. Today, the running of the administrative reform process is strongly made more difficult, the situation being determined, beyond the influence of the internal factors, mainly, by the repercussions of the world economic crisis, fully and directly felt at the national level, as well.

Forced to adapt to the increasingly complex requirements of society and subjected to conditionings of political, economic, legal, etc. nature, at present, the public administration makes the object of an ample and rigorous reform, which aims to be implemented efficiently, with immediate benefits and long-term impact.

The multiple delays and failures occurred in this process and the inexistence of unique reform models as referential for the specialists in the field, have lead to the emergence of skeptical opinions with respect to the success of this reform, supported, in the plane of objective reality, by the partial and visible failure of the process.

The works attempts to demonstrate that in the current context, a successful reform should be directed towards the modernization and development of public administration, such as it is characterized by transparency, predictability, responsibility, adaptability and efficiency, identifying new means, methods or instruments for making the reform more dynamic.

For this reason, the paper will emphasize, starting from the current stage of achievement of the public administration reform, and from the perspective of the need to accelerate it, the role and positive implications of consolidating the present inter-organizational network of actors involved in the reform process and focuses on the use of participative mechanisms for the purpose of involving the interested factors in the important decisions referring to them, which will lead, on the one hand, to the increase and strengthening of the citizens’ role, and, on the other hand, to the consolidation of a democratic governance.

From this perspective, the work develops an empirical analysis that performs a correlation between: the measures comprised in the Governing Program for the periods 2005-2008, respectively 2009-2012, undertaken for achieving institutional reform in Romania, during the period leading up to the EU accession, respectively the post-accession period; the power delegation matrix proposed by Kenneth A. Sigrist in order to ensure a successful reform of public administration; and the influence of certain factors, exogenous and endogenous to the political-administrative system, on the government’s capacity to resolve the problems and to adapt to the changes in society.

The correlation demonstrates the importance of the role of the network of actors and its impact on maintaining the internal consistency of reform for its efficient implementation, which ensures the stability of the public administration system before major challenges, such as the current world economic crisis.

1. Introduction

The modifications occurred in the economic and social-politic context of Romania, as a result of passing from communism to capitalism, from totalitarianism to a political regime based on democratic values, imposed the modification of the public administration system by reconsidering it, from a simple instrument of the political power, a means of achieving goals, to a consolidated decisional centre with a high degree of autonomy and powers[2].

In a stage of transformations, new requirements, pressures from a dynamic society, many times surprising through the mutations occurred in the social-politic and economic environment, the State and public administration must anticipate, intervene and settle the needs of society, promptly and efficiently.

European integration, globalization, decentralization, integration of new technologies, constitute challenges with which public administration must cope and determine the adaptation of its structures to the evolution of the duties entrusted upon it, by the political power, in relation to which, administration, from a historical perspective, evolves in a direction favourable to the latter[3].

From the same historical perspective, it can be said that „for a long time, public administration has been trying to discover a model of organizing, of management, of functioning, of human resources, and, in general, a pattern adapted to the transformations it sees itself subjected to, as a consequence of the evolution of the State and of the actual transformations”[4].

Since there is competition between the public and private actors, due, first of all, to the redistribution of competences between these actors, public administration must demonstrate that it has a new perception on the issues, novel analysis types, innovative measures[5], indispensible for the administrative activity.

This new capacity of deep understanding of the processes and mechanisms necessary for adapting administration to the social realities cannot be obtained and consolidated solely with the help of changes of institutional or procedural order. It must be the result of substantial, long-term transformations of behavior, values, which to ensure the existence of an „efficient and democratic administrations, one of the most important criteria that define the modernity of a country”[6].

2. Challenges of the Romanian administrative reform in the period 1998-2010

The notable progress in what concerns Romania’s alignment to the European standards, confirmed by the signing and ratification by Romania of the most important international legal instruments, confirms the fact that the Romanian public administration gained the consistency necessary for fulfilling the duties due to it in the current social-politic and economic context of Romania[7].

The challenges that the Romanian administration had to face, however, in spite of positive evolutions registered, highlighted its weaknesses, confirmed by the Periodical Reports of the European Commission, by the succession of the reform measures adopted by the Government, both during the post-December pre-accession period, and after joining the EU, as well as by the Government Reports regarding the stage of implementation of these measures.

In Romania, as in any other state, during any governing period, public administration was, is, and will remain subject of public controversies. After the change of the political regime following the December 1989 Revolution, until the present the public administration reform (RAP) became a permanent topic of investiture discourses of governments to succeed in running the country and, especially, of the commitments comprised on the governing programs.

During this period, the preoccupations and capacity of the leaders for RAP knew different intensity degrees.

The most important aspects contained in the Reporting Documents of the European Commission with respect to the implementation of certain measures that aimed at the reforming of the Romanian administration and the evolution of RAP can be synthesized as follows[8]:

·  Country reports for the period 1999-2003, confirm a mountain rouse evolution of the RAP implementation process, focusing on the need to articulate the administrative structures to the European exigencies for fulfilling the so-called Copenhagen criteria, to join the European Union, stipulated in the Conclusions of the European Council convened in the Danish capital[9]. The significant progress obtained by the authorities for this period refers to: Constitution review, major reorganizing of the Government, decentralization of governmental positions, demilitarization of the police and other organs subordinated to the Ministry of Interior, the restraint in using Government expedite ordinances, the partial implementation of the anti-corruption policy, the implementation of the anti-discrimination law, the administrative capacity of the People’s Attorney, the efficient functioning of UCRAP[10], the establishment of the inter-ministerial Committee for the reform monitoring, the treatment of national minorities, the reform of child care system in Romania, a.s.o. In the Country report for year 2003, the Commission mentions that the Romanian authorities demonstrate they have the political will, including in the field of administrative reform, but the reform process is in an incipient stage.

True, until year 2000, „the priority issues were completely others, public administration being secondary”[11], and reform management has been provided by „different administrative structures, depending on the central or local tier of administration”[12].

According to the official declarations[13], public administration had not succeed until that moment, in deploying an activity in the efficiency parameters aimed at, corresponding to reaching the major objective, of European integration.

As a consequence of this low capacity for managing the reform process, also sanctioned through the contestation motions submitted in the legislatures 1992-1996, respectively 1996-2000[14], in year 2001[15], the Government developed a strategy for reform acceleration in public administration, supported by PHARE interventions since 2001, until 2006, and developed through an enlarged portfolio of inter-connected strategies.

·  The Periodical report for year 2004, considering the progress made since the periodical report of 2003, mentions measures such as: launching the Reform strategy of public administration, the establishment of the Public Policies Units within the General secretariat of the Government, the elaboration of a strategy for training the public administration staff, the adopting of the framework-law regarding decentralization, a.s.o. Although this report of 2004 confirms the conclusions of the previous reports regarding the fact that Romania fulfills the political criterion for accession, one of its critical aspects refers to the need of continuing RAP.

The conclusions of the annual Country report of the European Commission for year 2003 determined the boosting of the reform process in the entire public administration system in Romania and the adoption of Government Decision no. 699/2004 for the approval of the Updated strategy of the Romanian Government regarding the acceleration of reform in public administration, 2004-2006.

In this regulation it is officially stated, only three years after the implementation of the reform measures, that Romania does not have an administration that answers the exigencies targeted by e RAP.

·  The Comprehensive Monitoring Report 2005 regarding Romania, the first one issued after the completion of the accession negotiation process and subsequent to the conclusion of The accession treaty of Romania to the European Union[16], with respect to the field of public administration, mentions that significant progress has been made at the level of organization and functioning of public administration. The e3fforts of the authorities are highlighted, in the direction of depolitization of the administrative apparatus, of creating the legal framework regarding the creation of the public office with special statute – the public manager, with the role of supporting the reform policies, of accelerating the decentralization process, a.s.o. The deficiencies registered preponderantly refer to the reform of public administration, revealing the slow-down of the RAP process, in spite of the progress recorded for one of the reform directions, namely the public office, the Commission recommending for the following period the making of additional efforts with respect to RAP.

To the strategy elaborated by the Government in year 2004 for the acceleration of reform in public administration, in 2005[17] is added the Updated strategy regarding institutional reform in the period 2005-2006, of the Ministry of Administration and Interior.

·  The Monitoring Report of Romania’s and Bulgaria’s stage of preparation for the statute of EU member presents the evaluation of the European Commission on the progress registered by each of the two countries for the period May-September 2006. The considerable efforts made by the two countries for the adaptation of their own legislation and administration to the European Union’s legislation and rules, which allow them, to a large extent, the alignment to the predominant standards and practices of the European Union, are mentioned.

For Romania, the Report identifies 4 conditionalities for which a strict monitoring is performed in the post-accession period. Conditionality 4 refers to the adoption of additional measures for the prevention and fight against corruption, especially within local administration.

In what concerns the progress registered in the field of RAP, the Report recommends the maintaining by our country of the sustainability of public administration reform.

After Romania’s accession to the EU, on January 1st, 2007, according to the revised Lisbon Strategy[18], the Romanian Government elaborated the National Reform Program (PNR) for the period 2007-2010, in which the development of the administrative capacity for implementing, evaluating and monitoring the reforms undertaken through PNR[19] is recognized as an important element.

With respect to conditionality 4, mentioned by the Commission Report of September 2006, the Report of the European Commission regarding the evolution of the accompanying measured in Romania after the accession, released to the public on the date of June 27th, 2007, recommended the elaboration of a coherent anti-corruption strategy at the national level, which to aim at the most vulnerable sectors and the local administration, as well as the monitoring of its application, recommendation applied through the elaboration of a national anti-corruption strategy for the period 2005-2007[20].

This strategy is continued, at present, by the National anti-corruption strategy regarding the vulnerable sectors and the local public administration for the period 2008-2010, in accordance to the objectives of the current Governing program, which are found in two of its priority chapters - „Public administration reform” and „Anti-corruption policies”.

The measures established by this Strategy come to complete the Public Administration Reform Strategy and objective no. I „Increase of transparency and integrity in public administration” of the National Anti-Corruption Strategy for the period 2005-2007.

3. The Model of Kenneth A. Sigrist of power delegation/distribution regarding la public administration reform; particularizations for Romania

For a post-socialist state such as Romania, the undertaking of the European democratic standards imposed the existence of a modern governance mechanism, the transformation of the governance functions and the redistribution of authority of the different levels requiring their accompanying by a corresponding reform of the functioning of public administration[21].

The organization of the administrative system, the management style and the achievement of the public intervention, throughout governance in Romania, presented the following trends[22]: persistence of legalist approach, weakly coordinated central government, relative failure of the modernization of public administration, relative failure of the new public management.