Communism Sells, At Least Stepping Into the Footsteps of Ceausescu Does

Dinel Staicu was a police officer during the communist regime; in the current one he climbed to very prominent positions in business, which allowed him to support a very rare hobby: that of preserving the memory - and also exploiting it - of the communist past, and in particular that of the former Romanian dictator, Nicolae Ceausescu.

Last January 26, which was Ceausescu’s birth date, the dwellers of Craiova city, in southeastern Romania, were treated on Staicu’s local television station to 10-hour broadcast of nonstop Ceausescu-only documentaries.
Staicu promised at the time that on January 1, 2007, upon Romania’s accession to the European Union, his fellow citizens would be able to visit the museums of communism he would open at Podari and Stejari.

Staicu, the former policeman, went after 1989 to become the head of the SIF Oltenia regional investment fund and owner of the Universitatea Craiova soccer club, with business deals which elevated him on the radar screens of the anticorruption prosecutor’s office.

At Podari, which is three kilometers away from Craiova, a large banner welcomes you with "Welcome comrades!", and various quotes of Ceausescu accompany you along the road to a five-star hotel, called The Museum of the Socialist Republic of Romania, which cost 15 million dollars to complete.

Stejari is a motel a few kilometers away from Scornicesti, the village Ceausescu was born in. Staicu opened there a second museum for communism-time memorabilia in the house Ceausescu was supposed to stay in, when visiting the region, However, he never did stay there.
A hammer and sickle are solidly placed at the gates of the property, behind which a wide courtyard opens, with a splendid villa, several other smaller houses and a summer garden behind it, in which wonderful peacocks wander around.
The hammer and sickle are placed upside-down, as a reminder of the times we live in.
Staicu explained that he "was not present to supervise the work, and now it was too late to change its position."

Dinel Staicu, proud to care for Nicolae Ceausescu’s image

Staicu said he celebrated the 2006 New Year at Stejari because there he "felt close to the spirit of Ceausescu."
Staicu wanted to invest in Scornicesti proper, but the locals "were mean" he said, so he iced his projects.He also had to shelve the idea to buy the house Ceausescu was born in, since the latter’s relatives - Emil, Gina and Nadia Barbulescu - did not agree with the plan.

Two months ago Staicu opened a gas station close to the Romanescu Park in Craiova, also adorned with the communist symbols. They did not go well with the municipality, which was close to ban them.

The Museum of the Socialist Republic of Romania is the unlikely name of the only five-star hotel in southeastern Romania

This January 26 Ceausescu would have turned 89, and this will most probably be a renewed opportunity for Staicu to broadcast communist-time films all day long on his television station.

A few years ago Staicu bought a house on Bujorului street in Craiova, where Ceausescu used to stay when visting the city. The deal was sealed for 67.2 RON, or less than 20 euros! But this was not the only reason for Staicu to rejoice: he got to sleep every night in the cherry-wood bed his idol used to sleep.