site.btaInterior Ministry May Be Divided into Four Agencies

Interior Ministry May Be Divided into Four Agencies

Sofia, December 19 (BTA) - The structural reform of the Interior Ministry may divide it into four agencies, Interior Minister Roumyana Buchvarova told a trade-union-hosted discussion on Friday. "The idea is being considered of dividing the Interior Ministry into four agencies and establishing a single police agency which will make the department more efficient," Buchvarova said.

"At present, the Interior Ministry is like a big, heavy steam locomotive," she said. According to her, the reform is aimed to create agencies which will work better and will make decisions much faster. "From this big steam locomotive we will make four well-functioning diesel engines," Buchvarova said.

It is good to draw a distinction between the general administration and the special administrations in the Ministry's directorates, giving them clear functions, she said, adding that the future of the administration lies in electronic technology.

"The whole point of the reform is that the services which the Interior Ministry provides to citizens will become better, rather than cutting the budget or reducing the staff by 10 per cent," the Minister said.

Valentin Popov, who heads the Trade Union Federation of Interior Ministry Employees, said the people working in the system feel insecure as they cannot plan their future and the future of their families even over the short term. "They know that more and more changes are coming up, only to worsen the situation in the Ministry," Popov complained.

Speaking at Friday's question time in the National Assembly, Minister Buchvarova said the payment of retirement benefits to 3,096 Interior Ministry officers began on Thursday. The Ministry is also going to pay the costs of over 100 lawsuits, she said. The retirement benefits were delayed because it was necessary to provide money for a wage increase that had not been secured financially.

Buchvarova said work has begun on a counter-terrorism plan which will establish three levels of risk and four degrees of readiness.