Digi24’s report on Moșteni town hall raises a public-administration question that saying “there were competitions” does not settle: when several relatives of a mayor work in the same institution, the process needs to be publicly inspectable, not merely asserted.
Digi24 reported that several employees at the town hall in Moșteni, Teleorman County, belong to the extended family of Mayor Vică Tăbărana. Its report names, among others, the mayor’s brother, cousins and son, who works at the cultural and sports centre. Digi24 said Tăbărana has been mayor for nearly 27 years and has won seven terms.
The mayor said there was nothing illegal and that his relatives had obtained their jobs through competitive hiring procedures. A general secretary identified in the report as the mayor’s cousin said that other candidates often did not come forward. That explanation deserves consideration: low pay and a limited labour market can reduce competition for public-sector jobs in small localities.
But that is precisely why the transparency standard matters. A competition with one applicant may comply with formal rules, yet it does not by itself answer questions about how vacancies were advertised, what entry requirements applied, who sat on selection panels, how candidates were scored, or whether relevant interests were declared. When a family network is so visible inside a public body, those records are necessary for public trust regardless of the ultimate legality of each appointment.
The supplied material does not establish that any hiring was unlawful, and it contains no audit finding or ruling by an integrity body. It does, however, provide a specific reason for Moșteni town hall to make the relevant recruitment files and rules easy to examine. In local government, transparency is not a ceremonial answer to suspicion. It is how an institution shows that family ties have not displaced open competition.
Sources
- Digi24 · Source date: 2026-11-12
Independent editorial content. WUA is not affiliated with any political party. 2026-11-12