site.btaBulgarian Solidarity's Maya Manolova Claims They Salvaged Cancer Centre in Shumen

A controversy about the Cancer Centre in Shumen brought Bulgarian Solidarity Coalition leader Maya Manolova to a Municipal Council meeting in the northeastern town. Manolova claims that Bulgarian Solidarity saved the Cancer Centre from being broken into separate parts and eventually liquidated.

The director of the facility, Svilen Arnaudov, was fired on a proposal by the town mayor, which was supported by the Municipal Council. On Friday, Manolova and supporters entered the Council meeting room, carrying placards. She told the Legal Affairs Committee that Arnaudov's dismissal violates at least 10 laws and regulations. Eventually, it became clear that Arnaudov will keep his job.

According to Manolova, the coalition's interference was not a political act, although it happened during an election campaign. "It was a citizens' act," she argued, as quoted by the Bulgarian Solidarity press office. "Literally in the space of a single day, we collected 1,000 signatures from Shumen residents who wanted to save the Cancer Centre and defend the present director."