#scapegoat

• Switchman — A railway worker specialized in the manual operation or monitoring of track switches within a station or shunting yard, holding direct responsibility for directing trains and wagons onto the correct tracks. Figuratively, the popular Romanian idiom 'acarul Păun' describes an innocent or minor employee turned into a scapegoat to cover up the corruption, errors, or negligence of higher-ups or an entire system.
• Scapegoat — A famous Romanian idiomatic phrase used to designate an innocent person, a low-ranking subordinate, or a minor employee who is administratively or politically sacrificed and turned into a scapegoat, being held solely responsible for a catastrophic error, corruption, or gross negligence committed by superiors or caused by a systemic failure. The origin of the idiom stems from a historical event in 1923, when a major train accident in Vintileanca station was blamed exclusively on a railway switchman named Ioan Păun to shield corrupt upper management.