Gabriel Sandu
Encyclopedia
Gabriel Sandu is a Romania
n economist and politician. A member of the Democratic Liberal Party
(PD-L), he was a member of the Romanian Chamber of Deputies
for Brăila County
from 2004 to 2008. In the Emil Boc
cabinet, he was Minister of Communications and Information Society from 2008 to 2010, also serving as interim Minister of Small and Medium Enterprises, Commerce and Business Environment in late 2009.
He has two sons and is divorced.
, Prahova County
and after attending secondary school at the town's Grigore Tocilescu Theoretical High School, with a focus on mathematics and physics, enrolled at the Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies. He graduated in 1989 from the Commerce faculty. From 1990 to 1993 he headed the import-export division at a mattress factory in Mizil. From 1993 to 1997, he was vice president of a furniture producer and distributor in Bucharest
. From 1997 to 2004, he was director of a private firm.
After joining the Union of Right-Wing Forces (UFD), Sandu became the president of its Prahova County chapter in 1999. He was then vice president (2000-2001) and secretary general (2001-2003) of the party before its absorption into the National Liberal Party
(PNL). From 2003 to 2004, he was a supplementary member of the PNL's executive bureau and vice president of its Prahova County chapter. In November 2004, he was elected
to the Chamber, where he served on the Committee for Political Economy, Reform and Privatisation. From 2004 to 2006, he was part of the PNL's executive bureau and vice president of its Brăila County chapter. In December 2006, he resigned from the PNL to follow Theodor Stolojan
into the new Liberal Democratic Party
(PLD), serving as that party's vice president for organisational consolidation and development. A year later, when the PLD merged into the PD-L, Sandu followed, and since then he has served as a vice president of the party and as first vice president of the Prahova County chapter.
At the 2008 election
, Sandu ran for a Prahova County Senate
seat, but lost. During the campaign, two builders accused him of not paying 87,724 lei
(some $
35,000) for two houses he ordered built in Sinaia
; his name was also cited by an anti-money laundering agency regarding his dealings with an Italian
company that was itself suspected of laundering. The following month, he was named minister in the incoming government. His priorities as minister include rapidly accessing European Union
Structural Funds
, increasing interoperability among government agencies, developing the IT
and broadband
sectors, and digital television transition
. In October 2009, he became interim Small and Medium Enterprises Minister following the resignation of his PSD cabinet colleagues, including Constantin Niţă
, the previous occupant of that ministry, holding the portfolio until December. He was dismissed from the Communications Ministry in September 2010, following a cabinet reshuffle.
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
n economist and politician. A member of the Democratic Liberal Party
Democratic Liberal Party (Romania)
The Democratic Liberal Party is a populist, centre-right party in Romania. It was formed on 15 December 2007, when the Democratic Party merged with the Liberal Democratic Party. From 2004 to 2007, the Democratic Party was part of the governing Justice and Truth Alliance...
(PD-L), he was a member of the Romanian Chamber of Deputies
Chamber of Deputies of Romania
The Chamber of Deputies is the lower house in Romania's bicameral parliament. It has 315 seats, to which deputies are elected by direct popular vote on a proportional representation basis to serve four-year terms...
for Brăila County
Braila County
Brăila is a county of Romania, in Muntenia, with the capital city at Brăila.- Demographics :In 2002, Brăila had a population of 373,174 and the population density was 78/km².*Romanians – 98%*Romas, Russians, Lipovans, Aromanians and others....
from 2004 to 2008. In the Emil Boc
Emil Boc
Emil Boc is the Prime Minister of Romania, having served since December 2008. In June 2004, he was elected Mayor of Cluj-Napoca, the largest city in Transylvania. Boc is also the president of the Democratic Liberal Party, who designated him as Prime Minister in 2008. On October 13, 2009, his...
cabinet, he was Minister of Communications and Information Society from 2008 to 2010, also serving as interim Minister of Small and Medium Enterprises, Commerce and Business Environment in late 2009.
He has two sons and is divorced.
Biography
He was born in MizilMizil
Mizil is a town in Prahova County, Romania. Located in the southeastern part of the county, it lies along the road between the cities of Ploieşti and Buzău, and to the northeast of the national capital, Bucharest. Its position led it to become a thriving market town beginning in the 18th century,...
, Prahova County
Prahova County
Prahova is a county of Romania, in the historical region Muntenia, with the capital city at Ploieşti.-Demographics:In 2002, it had a population of 829,945 and the population density was 176/km². It is Romania's most populated county, having a population density double than the country's mean...
and after attending secondary school at the town's Grigore Tocilescu Theoretical High School, with a focus on mathematics and physics, enrolled at the Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies. He graduated in 1989 from the Commerce faculty. From 1990 to 1993 he headed the import-export division at a mattress factory in Mizil. From 1993 to 1997, he was vice president of a furniture producer and distributor in Bucharest
Bucharest
Bucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River....
. From 1997 to 2004, he was director of a private firm.
After joining the Union of Right-Wing Forces (UFD), Sandu became the president of its Prahova County chapter in 1999. He was then vice president (2000-2001) and secretary general (2001-2003) of the party before its absorption into the National Liberal Party
National Liberal Party (Romania)
The National Liberal Party , abbreviated to PNL, is a centre-right liberal party in Romania. It is the third-largest party in the Romanian Parliament, with 53 seats in the Chamber of Deputies and 22 in the Senate: behind the centre-right Democratic Liberal Party and the centre-left Social...
(PNL). From 2003 to 2004, he was a supplementary member of the PNL's executive bureau and vice president of its Prahova County chapter. In November 2004, he was elected
Romanian legislative election, 2004
The Romanian legislative election of 2004 was held on 28 November 2004. 137 seats in the Senate of Romania and 314 seats in the Chamber of Deputies were up for election.The 2004 legislative election was held simultaneously with the presidential election...
to the Chamber, where he served on the Committee for Political Economy, Reform and Privatisation. From 2004 to 2006, he was part of the PNL's executive bureau and vice president of its Brăila County chapter. In December 2006, he resigned from the PNL to follow Theodor Stolojan
Theodor Stolojan
Theodor Dumitru Stolojan is a Romanian politician. An economist by training, he is a leader of the Democratic-Liberal Party. He previously served as Prime minister of Romania from September 1991 to November 1992. He and his wife Elena have a son, Vlad Stolojan, and a daughter, Ada Palea...
into the new Liberal Democratic Party
Liberal Democratic Party (Romania)
The Liberal Democratic Party was a political party in Romania, formed in December 2006 as a breakaway group from the National Liberal Party...
(PLD), serving as that party's vice president for organisational consolidation and development. A year later, when the PLD merged into the PD-L, Sandu followed, and since then he has served as a vice president of the party and as first vice president of the Prahova County chapter.
At the 2008 election
Romanian legislative election, 2008
Legislative elections were held in Romania on November 30, 2008. The Democratic Liberal Party won most seats in both the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate, although the alliance headed by the Social Democratic Party won a fractionally higher vote share.-Electoral System:President Traian Băsescu...
, Sandu ran for a Prahova County Senate
Senate of Romania
The Senate of Romania is the upper house in the bicameral Parliament of Romania. It has 137 seats , to which members are elected by direct popular vote, using Mixed member proportional representation in 42 electoral districts , to serve four-year terms.-Former location:After the Romanian...
seat, but lost. During the campaign, two builders accused him of not paying 87,724 lei
Romanian leu
The leu is the currency of Romania. It is subdivided into 100 bani . The name of the currency means "lion". On 1 July 2005, Romania underwent a currency reform, switching from the previous leu to a new leu . 1 RON is equal to 10,000 ROL...
(some $
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
35,000) for two houses he ordered built in Sinaia
Sinaia
Sinaia is a town and a mountain resort in Prahova County, Romania. The town was named after Sinaia Monastery, around which it was built; the monastery in turn is named after the Biblical Mount Sinai...
; his name was also cited by an anti-money laundering agency regarding his dealings with an Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
company that was itself suspected of laundering. The following month, he was named minister in the incoming government. His priorities as minister include rapidly accessing European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
Structural Funds
Structural Funds and Cohesion Funds
The Structural Funds and the Cohesion Fund are financial tools set up to implement the Cohesion policy also referred to as the Regional policy of the European Union. They aim to reduce regional disparities in terms of income, wealth and opportunities...
, increasing interoperability among government agencies, developing the IT
Information technology
Information technology is the acquisition, processing, storage and dissemination of vocal, pictorial, textual and numerical information by a microelectronics-based combination of computing and telecommunications...
and broadband
Broadband Networks
The ideal telecommunication network has the following characteristics: broadband, multi-media, multi-point, multi-rate and economical implementation for a diversity of services [1][2]. The Broadband Integrated Services Digital Network provides these characteristics in today's networks...
sectors, and digital television transition
Digital television transition
The digital television transition is the process in which analog television broadcasting is converted to and replaced by digital television. This primarily involves both TV stations and over-the-air viewers; however it also involves content providers like TV networks, and cable television...
. In October 2009, he became interim Small and Medium Enterprises Minister following the resignation of his PSD cabinet colleagues, including Constantin Niţă
Constantin Niţă
Constantin Niţă is a Romanian economist and politician. A member of the Social Democratic Party , he has been a member of the Romanian Chamber of Deputies for Braşov County since 2000...
, the previous occupant of that ministry, holding the portfolio until December. He was dismissed from the Communications Ministry in September 2010, following a cabinet reshuffle.