Antena 3 CNN Romania Camelia Voiculescu: I am trying to get over the bad moments in a nice way and not lose my faith

Camelia Voiculescu: I am trying to get over the bad moments in a nice way and not lose my faith

Camelia Voiculescu: I am trying to get over the bad moments in a nice way and not lose my faith
15 Sep 2014   •   09:26
Camelia Voiculescu, shareholder of Intact Media Group, was interviewed by the Agerpres agency during an eventful period in her life, such as the conviction of her father, Dan Voiculescu, to ten years imprisonment in the privatization case of the Institute of Food Research, the seizure of the buildings where the headquarters of the five TV channels are and the confiscation of millions of lei from their accounts.

AGERPRES: The first question comes naturally: Have you managed to talk to your father through all this period? How is he?

Camelia Voiculescu: I talk to my father as often as possible. How is he? He’s strong. He is a fighter. I know his public image is that of a sober man, severe, but it’s worth knowing that he’s got a great capacity to love people. I believe that his power lies precisely in this quality. My father insists on the faith he places in people and the truth.

AGERPRES: How are you handling this situation?

Camelia Voiculescu: I am trying to get over the bad moments in nice way, to find in everything related to these events some sense so as not to lose my faith.

AGERPRES: The court's decision affected the employees of the group you are running. What reactions have you had from them and what were the answers to their questions?

Camelia Voiculescu: I have not been asked the questions directly, but I want to give some answers. I want to specify, related to my status to which you have referred in the question, that I do not run the media group, but I am a shareholder. My executive role in the company ended a few years ago. Each platform of the trust is managed by a strict management and an effective system. The results are tangible – the ratings increases which have situated the Intact group televisions in the top, the content provided which has brought an added value every year, paying regular taxes to the state. For anyone wondering, our group paid taxes to the state in the amount of 326 million euros over the last decade.

The court’s decision does not relate to the press trust activity, whose objective has been, for many years, the organic growth. The fact that our group is the only profitable Romanian media outlet is not accidental, but it is validated by the results of the growing ratings. Over the past two years, the TV division has increased its market share by 11% in prime time on commercial advertising. I believe that the most valuable asset is the people whose perseverance and motivation give strength and value to the entire construction.

AGERPRES: The court order the seizure of the TV outlets headquarters buildings of the entire Media Group. What are you doing in this respect?

Camelia Voiculescu: First, I want to emphasize that I consider properties seizure to be an unfair and disproportionate measure. The buildings have never born any connection to the ICA privatization file, representing assets constituted and acquired legally by the companies they belonged to. We will defend this right before the national and international courts, with all the legal arguments. Just to illustrate one of the absurdities, the tower block was built starting in 1996 and acquired by Grivco in 1999, while the law they refer to was published only in 2002 and the privatization took place in 2003 – this being the context, how can you seize an asset that was legally acquired before the alleged offense?

AGERPRES: In difficult times, austerity measures are taken. How difficult the upcoming months will be for the Group employees?

Camelia Voiculescu: The Media Group achieved in the last year the most relevant operation performance since inception. The Intact companies are the only companies which during the difficult economic period of the last five years, have achieved remarkable results both financially and in terms of ratings.

Coming back to the question, the autumn months will be for the employees just as full and eventful as usual – it is the time for the new schedules that they have been working on for months. All business plans have as main objectives the development and relevance of the content to the public and to our partners. In this sense, our whole attention is directed to the contents of the projects for this fall and for 2015. The Intact Trust can meet all its commitments to the viewers and business partners. I am convinced that this fall will be the validation of the work performed by the exceptional people working in the group.

AGERPRES: What will be the first measures you will take on the short term?

Camelia Voiculescu: Our business plans have never targeted short-term activities. We will make sure, as always, that our partners are satisfied with the services offered and that the public receives relevant programs. We provide the most powerful communication platform, but most importantly, we deliver results. The Intact Group televisions hold over 20% of the market, both for the commercial audience and the urban audience. We enjoy the trust and sympathy of an audience of millions of Romanians daily.

AGERPRES: Dan Voiculescu said that he paid also for the disclosures Antena 3 made over the time. Will the editorial policy of Antena 3 change?

Camelia Voiculescu: The content policy of the Group companies has always belonged to their management teams. Both my father and I have understood that the most important thing for the media is the freedom of expression, always respecting the journalists beliefs and perseverance in promoting their ideas.

AGERPRES: Right before this decision, Antena 1 has made a series of formats acquisitions. Would you have been more sparing if he had considered such a verdict ?

Camelia Voiculescu: Antena 1 is landmark television channel for entertainment in Romania and all the strategic decisions support that position on the market. The company soundness is reflected in what has already been publicly announced and in the development plans. Antena 1 is a business that supports itself independently and it is profitable.

AGERPRES: Has this experience changed you in any way? What have you learned?

Camelia Voiculescu: It has not changed me. You cannot learn something positive out of such an experience. It is simply a bad experience that I really hope will not teach me to hate and to see evil in everything. What could I have learned? To be afraid? When you're dealing with injustice, you ask yourself if it serves any good to be fair. Loving one’s country has become obsolete. Ilie Nastase has told me that they respect him more in in France than in his own country. Why should it be so, why the disclaimer? I’ve been wondering if there is any Romanian who has succeeded in business and is appreciated locally. I have found no answer. Why only success stories abroad are models for us? Even the fact that the above mentioned facts are rhetoric, should not be regarded as normal.

AGERPRES: Is there anything you would like to publicly convey to your father.?

Camelia Voiculescu: Yes, many. I'd like to say that I love him and that I am very proud of him, he deserves our respect. I'd like him to know that I understand his efforts, that all his efforts are rewarded with good thoughts from people. On the other hand, there are some who enjoy this injustice, the petty, insignificant ones. For me, my dad is the man from whom I’ve learned that it is worth fighting to have a meaning in your country. It meant a lot that he has not forgotten where he left from. I know he has many good things to say and do. And, for all that I am very lucky to have him in my life.

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