A group of Romanian NGOs, the Coalition for a Clean Government, urged prime minister Calin Popescu Tariceanu on Wednesday not to accept the nomination of Conservative leader Dan Voiculescu as deputy prime minister, a seat that was left vacant last week with the resignation of another Conservative, George Copos.

The Conservative Party – PC, a minor leader of the governing coalition, has nominated its president Voiculescu for the seat after Copos withdrew in protest against the provisions of a new Fiscal Code, approved by the Government. But the media have insisted Copos resigned in relation to his involvement in a major corruption scandal this year.

According to the Coalition for a Clean Government, PM Tariceanu should not accept Voiculescu in his team due to the lack of clear information on how he made a huge fortune under the communist regime and on his alleged involvement with ex-dictator secret police, the Securitate.

Also on Wednesday, Voiculescu said that he would not accept to work with the government unless his tasks as deputy PM are clearly defined, with specific deadlines.

And he dismissed accusations related to his possible involvement with the Securitate, saying that he called on the agency studying the Securitate files to independently check whether he was part of or collaborated with it.