Dan Reşitnec stated that these expenses cover government meetings, conferences, and protocol arrangements for various inter-institutional events or those involving international participation.
Halving protocol expenses represents „the normal way things should work,” the Government Secretary General wrote on Facebook.
Where the cuts came from
Reşitnec explained that some of these cuts stemmed from a reduction in „prolonged review meetings.” He added that, in the past, it was common practice for certain officials to hold working meetings with external guests where protocol refreshments were provided within a limit of 150 lei per person.
„95,000 lei in March of this year, 68,000 lei in April, and 1,800 lei in May—after I took over leadership of the General Secretariat of the Government (SGG),” he explained.
The figure for May „also includes the water provided to participants at the Government’s preparatory meeting,” Reşitnec added.
„Last year, the SGG signed contracts for protocol services worth 2.5 million lei. This year, the contracts were worth 2.7 million lei; however, the amounts I mentioned earlier represent the actual expenditure, which is much lower,” he continued. „Unjustified hospitality expenses and claims by high-ranking officials covered by public funds—all of these have been reduced or cut,” concluded the Government’s Secretary-General, Dan Reşitnec.