Mihai Neicu: The department I manage was set up at the same time with the demand of improving the functional relations between the management of the ministry and the relevant departments. Concurrently was assessed a process of efficiency in regard to the circulation of the documents to the offices of the Minister, state-secretaries and the general secretary, as well as from them to the departments and outside. A very important role of our department is the ensuring of a good as possible image of the actions undertaken by the Ministry – both in the country and abroad – through the contacts with the Mass Media and last but not least with the public, natural and legal persons.
R.J.: How was this new department structured?M.N.: The Technical Secretary Mass Media, Public Relations and Protocol was designed to operate according to the following structure:
R.J.: Please, tell us briefly a couple of words about each compartment. Let’s start with the Technical Secretary Service, Relations with the Parliament and Labor Unions.
M.N.: This service maintains the permanent connection between the central institutions and the ministry, prepares the files with daily documents for the Minister Traian Basescu, the state-secretaries, the general secretary. The relation with the Parliament comprises among others the formulation of the answers to the appeals to Minister Traian Basescu by senators and deputies within the sessions of the two chambers of the Parliament. Concurrently, through this service is maintained a tight and permanent connection between the Transport Ministry and the Government of Romania. Concretely, the immediate notification of the General Secretary of the Government is ensured in regard to that are incumbent to the Transport Ministry, as it results from the Government sessions. In regard to the relation with the labor unions, the coordination, administration and solving of the communication crisis and conflicts is accomplished through Social Dialogue Commissions set up at the level of the Ministry.
R.J.: Is there any open conflict you have to face nowadays?
M.N.: As you know, there have been problems with Metrorex; but they have been solved, at least for the moment. We hope to solve the demands of the labor union members of Metrorex within the possibilities of the Ministry.
R.J.: What does the presentation of a real as possible image of the Ministry’s activity comprise in your opinion?
M.N.: The personnel of this compartment ensures and transmits permanently to the written press and the audio and visual communication means from the country and abroad, information related to the last decisions which the management of the Ministry takes. The maintenance of the link is performed by organizing regularly press conferences where accredited representatives of the televisions, radio stations and different publications participate.
Those who don’t have the possibility to participate at such conferences may request the information through fax. The trips of the Minister and of the Minister’s employees in the territory are also performed through this service.
R.J.: Which was the scope of setting up the dispatcher compartment and what attributions do they have?
M.N.: The Dispatcher Compartment was set up within the service in order to ensure the permanency at the Minister’s office. The five dispatchers receive, transmit and supervise the fulfillment of the operative orders issued by the Ministry, collect data and draw up informative notices in regard to the events from the field of transport. After finishing the working program, they must receive the correspondence and answer telephone calls. During the working program this activity is solved through the technical secretary.
R.J.: I left on purpose for the end the Compartment of Public Relations, Protocol and Passports. Which is first of all the relation of the Ministry with the public that is ensured by the department you manage?
M.N.: From the beginning I want to underline the special role this compartment has. It establishes permanent contacts between the management of the Ministry and the natural or legal persons who can appeal, inform, request or even propose different solutions. The methodology is the following: the persons who have a problem to solve that falls under our competency, must draw up a memo in which it presents concretely both the personal identification data and the requests they have. The memo is submitted at the Registrar’s Office with the Transport Ministry that is sub-ordinate to our department, at the following address:
The Transport
Ministry
Bd. Dinicu Golescu no. 38
District 1, code 70050,
Telephone 6384857 or CFR 2588.
The legal solving term is of 30 days. The answer will be sent at the applicant’s address or it shall be taken directly by the latter from the Registrar’s Office. We chose this method in order to facilitate the situation of the one who submits the memo, especially of the persons who don’t live in Bucharest. According to the importance of the appealed problem, I solve the memo or it is forwarded to be solved by other compartments from the management of the Ministry.
By taking over the Passport Compartment we succeeded to establish better relations with the state that have diplomatic relations with Romania, in regard to the obtaining of travel visas in the interest of the job for the central body of the Ministry. In regard to the protocol activity we are the ones who organize the delegations in the country and abroad, as well as domestic and international travels of the staff from the Transport Ministry.
Poliana Balaci