Mayor of Mogoșești uses Rabla-funded electric cars for family, police serve as drivers

In August, the commune of Mogoșești obtained three Rabla vouchers amounting to 360,000 lei and combined them with a sizable local-budget contribution to purchase three new electric cars. Although an open tender was initially announced, mayor Ionel Baraboi withdrew the process two days before the submission deadline, citing a revision of estimated values, and proceeded with a direct purchase split into two transactions executed within minutes.

This method avoided the legal ceiling that would require a competitive procedure, a practice prohibited by public procurement law. The vehicles, which include an MG EHS SUV, an MG4 Urban hatchback, and a Maxus eDeliver 3 van, are primarily used by the mayor, his wife Lenuța Baraboi—who lacks a driving licence—and their son Florin-Paul Baraboi, all of whom hold municipal jobs. Local police officers, numbering only two, have been tasked with driving the cars for the mayor’s family and for other staff members, such as the chief accountant traveling to the neighboring commune of Grajduri. The scheme highlights potential abuse of state-funded incentives and raises questions about transparency in local government spending.