Dominic Fritz agrees with merging the counties, but does not believe that the PSD wants to do it

USR President Dominic Fritz criticizes the PSD’s plan for administrative-territorial reform and argues that the versions publicly put forward by the Social Democrats are intended to distract attention from the reforms the government is failing to deliver. He made the statement Thursday evening on Digi24, after PSD MEP Dragoș Benea presented ideas concerning the redrawing of Romania’s administrative map.

Fritz says that the PSD is deliberately keeping public attention focused on discussions about the number of counties, thresholds and administrative reorganization, without advancing essential reforms. He also criticized the idea of the Government assuming responsibility for the legislation, arguing that a profound reform cannot be carried out without analyses and debates in Parliament and at the local level.

However, the USR leader acknowledges that reform is necessary. According to him, Romania has too many counties, and some cannot sustain themselves administratively, managerially and financially. Reducing the number of counties and increasing the size of administrative-territorial units could enable economies of scale and more efficient public services.

Fritz believes that the discussion should focus particularly on the development of rural areas, their funding and improving the quality of services, rather than merely setting figures or thresholds. He argues that a smaller administrative apparatus could free up resources for better services available to a larger number of citizens.