Hero and Rescuer for 23 years, Today a Big “Liar” Investigated by… the National Anti-Corruption Department ???!!!

The tragedy at “Colectiv” club has turned, just like the plane crash in Apuseni Mountains, into a media circus, into a chaotic and ruthless witch hunt. Absolutely, the guilty must pay. But, the really guilty ones, not the scapegoats thrown into the lion’s den for the sake of the media and some people’s despair to save their jobs by still showing they are doing something.

Among the “biggest liars and guilty ones” - one should note the inverted commas – of the tragedy at “Colectiv”, who now are under investigation by the National Anti-Corruption Department (DNA), we find lieutenant-colonel Orlando Şchiopu, as the deputy chief-inspector with ISU Bucharest-Ilfov. According to the job description, the first deputy of a chief-inspector should be in charge with the management of the OPERATIVE department. That is, he is responsible for the firefighters involved in emergency situations, their training, efficiency, the way in which they carry out their missions etc. And definitely not responsible for solving of the requests regarding the fire prevention. In such case, there are other authorized institutions.

I shall neither mention the law frame by which a serviceman can be investigated, nor the suspiciously superficial way in which an event planner announces an event which states the attendance of 2.000 people, by fax, at 23.30 at night, just a day before the respective event and not by a fifteen day’s notice, according to law.

I shall write about lieutenant-colonel Orlando Şchiopu. A few days ago he celebrated his birthday. As always, when the editorial staff know about the birthdays of a particular firefighters, or are announced by colleagues or friends, our paper publishes a “happy birthday wish”, accompanied by the photo of the celebrated person. Orlando Şchiopu always gives us a headache since, in most all of his Facebook photos, he appears covered in smoke and sooty, either surrounded by flames or on a roof top holding a hose in his hand. Marked by the job he has chosen.

He is a firefighter forged in the countless fires which he tried to put out during his career as rescuer. Those who had the chance to work alongside the firefighters, know that there are people among them whose greatest love is the “EXTINGUISHMENT”. Well, firefighter Şchiopu is one of them.

You can see in the photo gallery, bits and pieces in the everyday life of Orlando Şchiopu. Although a commanding officer himself, he is not characterized by the tidy pose of him standing behind a desk.

On that cursed night at “Colectiv”, firefighter Şchiopu was saving lives. On his face, one can see concern, sorrow, mercy, hope. One can see the superhuman effort and despair with which he was trying to save lives. There were discussions about a possible therapeutic support for the firefighters who were on duty on that night in the inferno at “Colectiv”. Most probably, the investigation by the DNA is part of that therapeutic support.

Şchiopu is one of the heroes who saved lives at “Colectiv”. Today, he is called a “big liar”. Şchiopu is one of the persons about whom prime minister Cioloş states that he should be relieved of his duty, and “never be allowed to return in the system”. What are you talking about, Mr. Prime-Minister ? A man who, over a period of TWENTY-THREE years, has been saving lives and assets, who is 100% in the average citizen’s job, who has had numerous accomplished missions, cannot be a part of the system any longer ? Do you have something to complain about the OPERATIVE rank ? A department where he is supposed to perform as such ? In the heat of the moment and of the media crisis, in the pathetic attempt to show that one takes into account the media, we get to smear the same people who everybody was proud of only a month ago ?

Those who know him, his activity and DEVOTION to carry out his job, are and remain proud of FIREFIGHTER Orlando Şchiopu. They strongly believe in him and in the need of the Firefighters’ Service for more like him.

Photo Gallery