Ilie Sârbu
Encyclopedia
Ilie Sârbu is a Romania
n theologian, economist and politician. A member of the Social Democratic Party
(PSD), he has sat in the Romanian Senate
since 2004, representing Timiş County
. In the Adrian Năstase
cabinet, he was Agriculture Minister from 2000 until July 2004, and he held the same position in the Emil Boc
cabinet between 2008 and 2009.
He and his wife Mariana have a daughter, Daciana Sârbu
, married to Ilie Sârbu's Boc cabinet colleague Victor Ponta
.
, Caraş-Severin County
and holds two degrees, one obtained in 1975 from the Sibiu Theological Institute
and one in 1998 from the University of Craiova
Economics Faculty, with a Management specialty. He also studied Theology in Geneva
(1984-1985), English
in Birmingham
(1989) and Finance in Germany (1994). Sârbu became a professor at the Caransebeş
Theological Seminary in 1976 and its director in 1978, remaining until 1981. From 1981 to 1991, he was an economic adviser at the Metropolis of Banat of the Romanian Orthodox Church
. During 2006, two accusations were made that Sârbu collaborated with the Securitate
during the 1980s. The first came from a former Timiş County agent, who charged that Sârbu had been recruited for a mission to the Vatican
; the latter denied this and presented a CNSAS certificate confirming that his name does not figure in existing files as having been an informant or agent. Then, after a second CNSAS certificate again exonerated him, it emerged that Sârbu's name appeared on a list belonging to the former spy Liviu Turcu, and that he had been a domestic agent; Sârbu vehemently denied the new claim (labelling Turcu a "traitor") and said he had in fact been under Securitate surveillance.
Following the 1989 Revolution
, Sârbu entered business, working as the director of Fangmeier, a Timişoara
-based grain distributor, from 1991 until 2000. In 1992, he helped secure the first McDonald's
contract for Romania. He also joined the PDSR (predecessor of the PSD) in 1993. From that year until 2001, he was vice president of the Timiş County party chapter, and also sat on the party's national council. From 2001 to 2004 he was a member of the PSD's central coordinating bureau. Since 2004 he has headed the PSD's Timiş County chapter, and since 2005 he has been a vice president of the national party. During 2000, he was president of the Timiş County Council, and was appointed Agriculture Minister at the end of that year. In this capacity, he led and finalised negotiations with the European Union
on the Agriculture chapter of the acquis. Several scandals affected his term: in 2001, he was accused of criminal involvement in the privatisation of a Prahova County
company, but later cleared; in 2003, a number of national newspapers alleged that he obtained a spacious central Bucharest villa at far below market value through a shady deal; also, he lost a testicle
in a hunting accident that December. He was dismissed in 2004 by Prime Minister
Adrian Năstase
so he could focus on party work, and stated the move came as "a surprise" to him.
Later in 2004, Sârbu was elected
senator, serving as the body's secretary and, from October to December 2008, as its president, being elected to that position following the resignation of Nicolae Văcăroiu
. In 2008, he was re-elected
senator and named Agriculture Minister once again. In this capacity, he pledged to find new markets for Romanian agricultural products and to obtain additional funds through the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development
. Regarding the latter priority, at the April 2009 Council of Ministers
meeting, he secured a commitment to raise subsidies by €
35 per hectare, benefiting around 1.25 million farmers. Previously, he had fired 60 managers at the agency responsible for distributing the EU funds because of repeated delays in starting payments. Together with his PSD colleagues, Sârbu resigned from the cabinet on October 1, 2009, in protest at the dismissal of vice prime minister and Interior Minister Dan Nica
. The following August, he was elected PSD leader in the Senate.
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 theologian, economist and politician. A member of the Social Democratic Party
Social Democratic Party (Romania)
The Social Democratic Party is the major social-democratic political party in Romania. It was formed in 1992, after the post-communist National Salvation Front broke apart. It adopted its present name after a merger with a minor social-democratic party in 2001. Since its formation, it has always...
(PSD), he has sat in the Romanian 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...
since 2004, representing Timiş County
Timis County
Timiș , , Banat Bulgarian: ) is a county of western Romania, in the historical region Banat, with the county seat at Timișoara. It is the largest county in Romania in terms of land area....
. In the Adrian Năstase
Adrian Nastase
Adrian Năstase is a Romanian politician who was the Prime Minister of Romania from December 2000 to December 2004.He competed as the Social Democratic Party candidate in the 2004 presidential election, but was defeated by centre-right Justice and Truth Alliance candidate Traian Băsescu.He was...
cabinet, he was Agriculture Minister from 2000 until July 2004, and he held the same position 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 between 2008 and 2009.
He and his wife Mariana have a daughter, Daciana Sârbu
Daciana Sârbu
Daciana Octavia Sârbu is a Romanian politician, lawyer, and Member of the European Parliament. Affiliated with the Social Democratic Party , part of the Party of European Socialists, she became a member of the Romanian Chamber of Deputies for Argeş County following the 2004 elections, and became...
, married to Ilie Sârbu's Boc cabinet colleague Victor Ponta
Victor Ponta
Victor-Viorel Ponta is a Romanian jurist and politician. A member of the Social Democratic Party and its leader since 2010, he has been a member of the Romanian Chamber of Deputies for Gorj County since 2004...
.
Biography
He was born in CiutaObreja
Obreja is a commune in Caraş-Severin County, western Romania with a population of 3249. It is composed of four villages: Ciuta, Iaz, Obreja and Var.-References:...
, Caraş-Severin County
Caras-Severin County
Caraș-Severin is a county of Romania, in the historical region of Banat and few villages in Transylvania, with the county seat at Reșița.-Demographics:The county is part of the Danube-Kris-Mureș-Tisza euroregion....
and holds two degrees, one obtained in 1975 from the Sibiu Theological Institute
Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu
The Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu was named after the philosopher, poet, and playwright, Lucian Blaga. It was founded in 1990 with five schools: Letters, History and Law, Medicine, Food and Textile Processing Technology, Engineering and Sciences...
and one in 1998 from the University of Craiova
University of Craiova
The University of Craiova is a university located in Craiova, Romania. It is an institution of higher education of complex integration, founded in 1947, with four faculties in the beginning, it has developed continuously, the number of specialization's increasing and today it meets the standards...
Economics Faculty, with a Management specialty. He also studied Theology in Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
(1984-1985), English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
in Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
(1989) and Finance in Germany (1994). Sârbu became a professor at the Caransebeş
Caransebes
Caransebeş is a city in Caraş-Severin County, part of the Banat region in southwestern Romania. It is located at the confluence of the river Timiş with the river Sebeş, the latter coming from the Ţarcu Mountains. To the west, it is in direct contact with the Banat hills...
Theological Seminary in 1976 and its director in 1978, remaining until 1981. From 1981 to 1991, he was an economic adviser at the Metropolis of Banat of the Romanian Orthodox Church
Romanian Orthodox Church
The Romanian Orthodox Church is an autocephalous Eastern Orthodox church. It is in full communion with other Eastern Orthodox churches, and is ranked seventh in order of precedence. The Primate of the church has the title of Patriarch...
. During 2006, two accusations were made that Sârbu collaborated with the Securitate
Securitate
The Securitate was the secret police agency of Communist Romania. Previously, the Romanian secret police was called Siguranţa Statului. Founded on August 30, 1948, with help from the Soviet NKVD, the Securitate was abolished in December 1989, shortly after President Nicolae Ceaușescu was...
during the 1980s. The first came from a former Timiş County agent, who charged that Sârbu had been recruited for a mission to the Vatican
Vatican City
Vatican City , or Vatican City State, in Italian officially Stato della Città del Vaticano , which translates literally as State of the City of the Vatican, is a landlocked sovereign city-state whose territory consists of a walled enclave within the city of Rome, Italy. It has an area of...
; the latter denied this and presented a CNSAS certificate confirming that his name does not figure in existing files as having been an informant or agent. Then, after a second CNSAS certificate again exonerated him, it emerged that Sârbu's name appeared on a list belonging to the former spy Liviu Turcu, and that he had been a domestic agent; Sârbu vehemently denied the new claim (labelling Turcu a "traitor") and said he had in fact been under Securitate surveillance.
Following the 1989 Revolution
Romanian Revolution of 1989
The Romanian Revolution of 1989 was a series of riots and clashes in December 1989. These were part of the Revolutions of 1989 that occurred in several Warsaw Pact countries...
, Sârbu entered business, working as the director of Fangmeier, a Timişoara
Timisoara
Timișoara is the capital city of Timiș County, in western Romania. One of the largest Romanian cities, with an estimated population of 311,586 inhabitants , and considered the informal capital city of the historical region of Banat, Timișoara is the main social, economic and cultural center in the...
-based grain distributor, from 1991 until 2000. In 1992, he helped secure the first McDonald's
McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is the world's largest chain of hamburger fast food restaurants, serving around 64 million customers daily in 119 countries. Headquartered in the United States, the company began in 1940 as a barbecue restaurant operated by the eponymous Richard and Maurice McDonald; in 1948...
contract for Romania. He also joined the PDSR (predecessor of the PSD) in 1993. From that year until 2001, he was vice president of the Timiş County party chapter, and also sat on the party's national council. From 2001 to 2004 he was a member of the PSD's central coordinating bureau. Since 2004 he has headed the PSD's Timiş County chapter, and since 2005 he has been a vice president of the national party. During 2000, he was president of the Timiş County Council, and was appointed Agriculture Minister at the end of that year. In this capacity, he led and finalised negotiations with the 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...
on the Agriculture chapter of the acquis. Several scandals affected his term: in 2001, he was accused of criminal involvement in the privatisation of a 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...
company, but later cleared; in 2003, a number of national newspapers alleged that he obtained a spacious central Bucharest villa at far below market value through a shady deal; also, he lost a testicle
Testicle
The testicle is the male gonad in animals. Like the ovaries to which they are homologous, testes are components of both the reproductive system and the endocrine system...
in a hunting accident that December. He was dismissed in 2004 by Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Romania
The Prime Minister of Romania is the head of the Government of Romania. Initially, the office was styled President of the Council of Ministers , when the term "Government" included more than the Cabinet, and the Cabinet was called The Council of Ministers...
Adrian Năstase
Adrian Nastase
Adrian Năstase is a Romanian politician who was the Prime Minister of Romania from December 2000 to December 2004.He competed as the Social Democratic Party candidate in the 2004 presidential election, but was defeated by centre-right Justice and Truth Alliance candidate Traian Băsescu.He was...
so he could focus on party work, and stated the move came as "a surprise" to him.
Later in 2004, Sârbu 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...
senator, serving as the body's secretary and, from October to December 2008, as its president, being elected to that position following the resignation of Nicolae Văcăroiu
Nicolae Vacaroiu
Nicolae Văcăroiu is a Romanian politician, member of the Social Democratic Party, who served as Prime Minister between 1992 and 1996. Before the 1989 Revolution he worked at the Committee for State Planning, together with Theodor Stolojan....
. In 2008, he was re-elected
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...
senator and named Agriculture Minister once again. In this capacity, he pledged to find new markets for Romanian agricultural products and to obtain additional funds through the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development
European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development
The European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development is a European agricultural fund which was set up for the financing of Rural Development Programme actions by European Union Council Regulation No 1290/2005 of 21 June 2005 on the financing of the common agricultural policy.Rural development is...
. Regarding the latter priority, at the April 2009 Council of Ministers
Council of the European Union
The Council of the European Union is the institution in the legislature of the European Union representing the executives of member states, the other legislative body being the European Parliament. The Council is composed of twenty-seven national ministers...
meeting, he secured a commitment to raise subsidies by €
Euro
The euro is the official currency of the eurozone: 17 of the 27 member states of the European Union. It is also the currency used by the Institutions of the European Union. The eurozone consists of Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg,...
35 per hectare, benefiting around 1.25 million farmers. Previously, he had fired 60 managers at the agency responsible for distributing the EU funds because of repeated delays in starting payments. Together with his PSD colleagues, Sârbu resigned from the cabinet on October 1, 2009, in protest at the dismissal of vice prime minister and Interior Minister Dan Nica
Dan Nica
Dan Nica is a Romanian engineer and politician. A member of the Social Democratic Party , he has been a member of the Romanian Chamber of Deputies for Galaţi County since 1996...
. The following August, he was elected PSD leader in the Senate.