Responsible self-governance - Concerned Citizens group

2024 marks an exceptionally pivotal year in Romania, with municipal, parliamentary, European Parliament, and presidential elections all taking place. These elections come at a crucial juncture, following four years of significant structural and attitudinal shifts. Additionally, the evident acceleration of climate change has made its impact increasingly tangible, shaping our daily lives. The decisions made by present and future political leaders hold the fate of future generations in their hands, underscoring the urgency for leaders who prioritize the long-term well-being of their communities over short-term gains. Whether governing small localities or larger regions, it is imperative that leaders are mindful of the weight of their actions and driven by a vision for the future.

The questionnaire designed by the Concerned Citizens group presents a comprehensive framework for responsible governance. Through a series of thoughtfully curated questions, we strive to illuminate the challenges confronting leaders in their respective municipalities and counties, assess the outcomes of their tenure, understand their motivations for seeking reelection (if applicable), delve into their visions for urban and community development, and gauge their commitment to the well-being of both current residents and future generations. These questions and their corresponding answers serve as valuable tools for voters seeking clarity and insight into the priorities and intentions of candidates vying for public office.

The responses to these questions serve a dual purpose: firstly, they enable mayors and councilors to transparently evaluate the successes and shortcomings of the past four years and present them candidly to the electorate. Secondly, they empower voters to make informed and responsible choices by electing strategic decision-makers who align with their values and priorities. By articulating their answers thoughtfully, candidates have the opportunity to showcase themselves in a structured manner throughout the current election campaign. We are committed to publishing the Responsible Governance questionnaire and its corresponding answers on the Concerned Citizens website (https://concernedcitizens.ro), as we believe it is imperative to uphold transparency and accountability within our community.

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Please provide brief descriptions of three notable municipal projects implemented in the past four years, which are deemed important by the community:*

If you are running for the mayor’s position again in this super-election year, what are your goals? Please outline your three most important objectives for developing the local community:*

In the past four years, how many public hearings have been organized by your office? Please specify the topics covered, attendance figures, methods of announcement, whether minutes were taken, and where they can be accessed?*

Over the past four years, how many office hours (designated times when a public official or authority is available to meet with members of the public to address inquiries, concerns, or requests for assistance) have you held, and how many residents have you received? What were the three most common complaints raised by residents during these sessions?*

How many public interest information requests have been submitted to the office in the past four years? Please provide a link to the annual summaries of these requests:*

In the area under your governance, have any institutions, streets, or squares been named after individuals of Romanian, Hungarian or other nationalities in the past four years? If so, kindly provide a list of these names along with the reasons behind their selection:*

How have the legal provisions regarding the use of the Hungarian language from the Administrative Code been enforced in the past four years?*

In what language(s) do council meetings take place?*

In what languages is public interest information posted on the mayor’s office notice board?*

Are normative council decisions translated into Hungarian?*

What languages are used on the office signs? Could you please provide pictures?*

How many petitions or applications formulated in Hungarian have been submitted in the past four years?*

Are there employees at customer service who speak Hungarian, and do they communicate in Hungarian with Hungarian residents?*

Based on your experiences, are residents aware of their rights? Do they know their linguistic rights? Do they attend council meetings and follow up on decisions and resolutions made during these meetings?*

What is the level of unemployment in the municipality, and what efforts have been made to improve the situation?*

Has the financial situation of residents improved or worsened in the past four years? Please provide statistics broken down by nationality and ethnicity:*

What was the gender ratio in the local council over the past four years? Within your political formation? Do you plan any changes in this area, such as increasing the proportion of female councilors?*

Are there other ethnic minorities in the municipality, such as the Roma community? Do Roma representatives hold positions in the local council?*

What measures have been taken in the past four years to mitigate the damages caused by climate change, such as flood management, combating drought, or reforestation:*

Has the mayor’s office celebrated Earth Day in the past four years? Have awareness campaigns been organized about stream and river pollution, drinking water quality, and the rights and obligations of the municipality and residents regarding climate change?*

If you decide to run in the upcoming elections, do you consider yourself a good steward, and why?*

We suggest that you upload a photo here that you would like to use during this year’s election campaign, which will appear on your social media pages when you share your responses to the questionnaire. On this website, this photo intended for social media will NOT appear.

In the past four years, how many council resolution proposals aiming at the realization of outstanding projects from the community’s perspective have you submitted, and which one are you most proud of?*

If you decide to run again for the position in the city/village council during this super-election year, what are your goals? What would you like to develop in the local community?*

How many office hours (designated times when a public official or authority is available to meet with members of the public to address inquiries, concerns, or requests for assistance) have you held in the past four years, and how many residents have you met? What were the most important complaints from residents during these office hours? Please list three:*

In the past four years, were any institutions, streets, or squares in the municipality (city/village) named after Romanian, Hungarian or individuals of other nationalities? If so, what are they, what names were given, and why?*

What have you done in the past four years to ensure that the provisions of the Administrative Code (Emergency Ordinance no. 57 of 2019) regarding the use of the Hungarian language were genuinely applied in your municipality? In what language did you speak at council meetings?*

Based on the experiences of the past four years, are the residents of your municipality aware of their rights? Do they know their language rights? Do they attend council meetings and follow up on the decisions and resolutions made (e.g., significant investments)?*

What is the unemployment rate in your municipality, and what initiatives have you undertaken to improve the situation?*

In the past four years, has the financial situation of the residents of your municipality improved or worsened? Broken down by nationality and ethnicity, what are the statistics?*

What was the male-to-female ratio in the local council over the past four years? Within your political group? Do you plan any changes in this area (e.g., increasing the ratio of female councilors)?*

Are there other ethnic minorities (e.g., Roma) in the municipality, and are there Roma ethnic councilors in the local council? Are there elected representatives of the Roma minority in the county/city council?*

In the past four years, what initiatives have you taken to mitigate the damage caused by climate change (e.g., flood management, drought combat, reforestation, etc.)?*

Over the past four years, how many proposals for county council resolutions aimed at implementing outstanding projects from the community’s perspective have you submitted, and which one are you most proud of?*

If you are running again for the county council position in this super-election year, what are your goals? What developments would you like to focus on in the local community?*

In the past four years, how many office hours (designated times when a public official or authority is available to meet with members of the public to address inquiries, concerns, or requests for assistance) have you held, and how many residents have you received? What were the three most pressing complaints from residents during these office hours? Please list three of them:*

In the past four years, what measures have you taken to ensure the articles regarding the use of the Hungarian language from the Administrative Code (Emergency Government Ordinance no. 57 of 2019) are implemented effectively in your county or in the institutions under the county council? In what language did you speak during the council meetings?*

Based on the experiences of the past four years, are the residents of the county aware of their rights? Do they understand their linguistic rights? Do they attend county council meetings, and do they follow the outcomes of the decisions and resolutions made during these meetings, such as significant investments?*

What is the level of unemployment in the county, and what initiatives have you undertaken to improve the situation?*

In the past four years, has the financial situation of the county’s residents improved or worsened? Could you provide statistics broken down by nationality and ethnicity?*

What was the male-to-female ratio in the county council over the past four years? Within your political formation? Do you plan any changes in this area, such as increasing the proportion of female councilors?*

Do the Roma minority living in the county have elected representatives in the county/city council?*

In the past four years, what initiatives have you undertaken to mitigate the damages caused by climate change, such as flood management, drought control, reforestation, etc.:*

Please briefly introduce three outstanding county level projects from the community’s perspective that were implemented in the last 4 years by the county council you lead:*

If you run again for the position of president of the county council in this super-election year, what are your goals? What would you like to develop in the county? Present your three most important objectives:*

In the last 4 years, how many public hearings have you organized? On what topics, how many people attended, how were the public hearings announced, were minutes taken, and where can they be accessed?*

In the last 4 years, how many office hours (designated times when a public official or authority is available to meet with members of the public to address inquiries, concerns, or requests for assistance) have you had, and how many residents have you received? What were the most important complaints from residents during office hours? Please list three:*

In the last 4 years, how many public information requests were submitted to the county council? (Law no. 544 of 2001) Please attach the link to the annual summaries of the submitted information requests:*

In the last 4 years, how were the articles of the Administrative Code (Emergency Ordinance no. 57 of 2019) regarding the use of the Hungarian language applied?*

In what language(s) are the council meetings conducted?*

In what languages are public information notices posted on the county council’s bulletin boards?*

Are the normative council resolutions translated into Hungarian?*

What language are the office signs in? Could you provide photos?*

How many Hungarian language petitions/requests have been submitted in the last 4 years?*

Are there employees at the customer service who know Hungarian, and do they speak Hungarian with Hungarian residents?*

Based on the experiences of the last 4 years, are the residents of the county you lead aware of their rights? Do they know their language rights? Do they attend county council meetings and follow up on the decisions and resolutions made (for example, significant investments)?*

What is the unemployment rate in the county, what is the average salary compared to other counties you lead, and what have you done to improve the situation?*

In the last 4 years, has the financial situation of the county’s residents improved or worsened? Broken down by nationality and ethnicity, what are the statistics?*

In the last 4 years, what was the male-to-female ratio in the county council? Within your political formation? Do you plan any changes in this area (for example, increasing the ratio of female councilors)?*

Are there elected representatives of the Roma minority in the county/city council?*

In the last 4 years, what measures have you taken to mitigate the damages caused by climate change (flood management, drought fighting, reforestation, etc.):*

In the last 4 years, has the county council celebrated Earth Day? Have you organized awareness campaigns about pollution of streams and rivers, water quality, rights, and obligations of the municipality and the population regarding climate change?*

If you run for the elections again, do you consider yourself a good steward, and why?*