site.btaDeputy Justice Minister: New Bill on High-Level Corruption Aims to Restore Justice, not to Bring Retribution

Sofia, August 1 (BTA) - The idea of a new bill on fighting high-level corruption is not to bring retribution but to restore justice, Deputy Justice Minister Evgeni Stoyanov said Tuesday as he presented the highlights of the bill to the press. He said that it is extremely hard to collect evidence of unlawful wealth.

Published late on Monday for public consultation by the Justice Ministry, the Counter-Corruption and Unlawfully Acquired Asset Forfeiture Bill provides for the establishment of a single independent authority responsible for fighting high-level corruption: a Commission on Counter-Corruption and Forfeiture of Unlawfully Acquired Assets. It will be authorized to use special surveillance means and to work with associates on a voluntary basis. The commission will verify the financial interests disclosure declarations, the conflict-of-interest declarations and eligibility declarations of senior public officials.

Where a discrepancy between an official's declared net income and assets exceeds 5,000 leva, the case will be referred to the National Revenue Agency. The official's entire property will be audited for a discrepancy of over 20,000 leva and the court will be asked to order forfeiture of an official's unlawfully acquired assets if the detected discrepancy is over 150,000 leva. Where forfeiture has been ordered, 30 per cent of the value of the assets forfeited will go for social purposes.

Under the new bill, the scope of officials who are currently required to submit financial interest disclosure declarations under the Act on Transparency of the Assets of Senior Public Officials is broadened to include municipal councilors, chief architects of municipalities, the rectors of higher educational establishments, the managers and executive directors of health care facilities and others.

The counter-corruption and asset-forfeiture commission will consist of a chairperson, a deputy chairperson and three members serving a single six-year term in office.

During forfeiture procedures in court, the counter-corruption and asset-forfeiture commission will be able to motion for the lifting of bank, trade and insurance secrecy.

Stoyanov commented on Tuesday that the new bill solves some provisions in the effective law, which don't work. "And we won't have a myriad of bodies with overlapping powers," he added.

He argued that the formation of the new commission is not excessive concentration of power and that it will have parliamentary oversight.

He called on Bulgarian people to give their credit of confidence to the new anti-corruption authority.

He said that the use of special surveillance means aims to improve the efficiency of counter-corruption efforts.

In a related development Tuesday, Prime Minister Boyko Borissov reacted to a proposal by Socialist leader Kornelia Ninova for creating a special anti-corruption authority under the President. Borissov said that he has already discussed with President Rumen Radev transferring the anti-corruption unit of the State Agency for National Security to the future anti-corruption commission.

He said the commission will be elected by Parliament "to make sure it is equidistant from all state institutions".