site.bta 149 Parties Submit Financial Reports to Audit Office In 2016, Nine Fail to Do So, Five face De-registration

149 Parties Submit Financial Reports to Audit Office In 2016, Nine Fail to Do So, Five face De-registration

Sofia, April 18 (BTA) - A total of 149 parties have submitted financial reports for 2016 and nine have failed to do so, the Audit Office said Tuesday.

Those that have not submitted financial reports include the Bulgarian Agrarian Union, the New Democracy Bulgarian National Union, Civic Force, Civil Union for Real Democracy (GORD), the Movement for Prosperity and Advancement, WHO - Competence, Responsibility and Truth, Nikola Petkov Agrarian Party, National Ideal for Unity and National Patriotic Association.

Five of these parties - the Bulgarian Agrarian Union, Civil Force, Movement for Prosperity and Advancement, WHO and the National Patriotic Association - will be referred to the prosecution authorities as they have failed to submit their financial reports for a second year in a row and face de-registration.

The reports of four parties - Motherland, Chernomorets, Union Bulgaria and Bulgarian Democratic Community - have been filed on time but fail to meet the requirements for reporting format, content or the manner of submission, which is why they are not considered to have been submitted.

Political parties that do not submit their financial reports on time face a pecuniary sanction ranging from 5,000 to 10,000 leva.

The Audit Office is about to begin its annual audit of political parties that have participated in elections, received state subsidies last year and used state- or municipal-owned office space.