site.btaRoad Infrastructure Agency Dismisses Claims by President-elect Radev about Toll Collection System Procurement

Road Infrastructure Agency Dismisses Claims by President-elect Radev about Toll Collection System Procurement

Sofia, January 3 (BTA) - The Road Infrastructure Agency on Tuesday dismissed allegations by President-elect Rumen Radev that it is disobeying an order of outgoing Prime Minister Boyko Borissov to halt all public procurement tenders after it had opened a procedure for the development of a toll collection
system on December 29.

The Agency recalls that the procedure was opened more than nine months ago and now it has been simply resumed. The deadline for the submittal of bids is January 5.

In a Facebook post Radev recalled that during a cabinet meeting on December 21, 2016 Prime Minister Boyko Borissov ordered his ministers to halt all public procurement tenders and in cases of urgency they should be consulted with Radev's office. Radev said that although legal, the decision is politically controversial.

The Road Infrastructure Agency recalls that since its opening on April 5 2016, the procedure has been halted several times due to appeals which have been dismissed by the court. After the last ruling in favour of the Agency from December 29 the procurement was resumed.

The Agency said that it complies with the order of the Prime Minister and that it hasn't consulted any of its procedures with the office of the President.

The tender is worth over 200 million leva which should be invested by the selected contractor. The investment will be repaid from future toll revenues.

On Tuesday Prime Minister Boyko Borissov ordered Regional Development Minister Liliyana Pavlova to talk with President-elect Radev and dispel any suspicions.
In a phone conversation Pavlova told Radev that following the court ruling the procedure has been resumed without any change of the terms and that only the deadline has been extended.
Meanwhile it emerged that the procedure has been halted again after a new complaint was lodged with the Commission for Protection of Competition.