Tax administration defends its operation at Antena Group

The National Tax Administration Agency (ANAF) detailed its operation against Intact Group's TV, in response to media allegations of disproportionate force. 

According to a release of the ANAF, only four teams comprising of 11 tax enforcement officers went to the Intact group offices, and only one of them at the Antena 3 news TV. They used four marked vehicles and only verified the identity of four people, to hand them the notifications as per the legal procedure. 

Representatives of Antena 3 mentioned in a release "ANAF's action, organised in the form of a landing operation, which involved unprecedented deployments and forces, directly threatening the freedom of expression, by jeopardizing the broadcasting of the Antena 3, Antena 1, Antena Stars, Euforia Tv and Zu Tv stations''. 

Private TVs of the Antena Group got a five-day eviction notice on Monday from the Bucharest Public Finances Regional General Directorate of the ANAF. Tax authorities were thus attempting to enforce a court sentence of 2013, confirmed on an appeal in 2014, against Dan Voiculescu, a former senator and owner of the Intact Group's TV stations, convicted to a 10-year prison term in a case of fraudulent privatization of a research institute. The sentence included the confiscation of Voiculescu's real estate to cover his share of prejudices of 60 million euros. 

The case also prompted political reactions. President Klaus Iohannis on Wednesday qualified as "gung-ho" the ANAF operation, adding he finds it "at least inappropriate, if not questionable". Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos was summoned by the Senate to explain the situation; although he defended ANAF's move as part of a legal procedure, he said he had called the tax enforcers to reconsider their attitude. AGERPRES