BULGARIA’S CARETAKER PRIME MINISTER PRESENTED THE RESULTS FROM THE INSPECTIONS IN THE MINISTRIES

Inspections in the 17 ministries and executive agencies in Bulgaria found irregularities in a number of public procurements conducted by the previous government. The most serious irregularities were at the Ministry of Defence, Bulgaria’s caretaker Prime Minister Ognyan Gerdzhikov said on 17th of February, presenting the summary on the results of the inspections, ordered by him on 30th of January.

Both President Roumen Radev and former Prime minister Boyko Borissov insisted on such inspections to be carried out.

There were no serious irregularities in public procurements carried out by the ministries of finance, transport, youth and sport, environment and water, social policy, education, tourism and energy.

113 public procurement procedures were carried out at the Defence Ministry in 2016. Thirty-one had been discontinued. The analysis found irregularities in 45 of the remaining 82. In 9 of them there were indications of fraud and they were referred to the Military Prosecutor’s Office, Gerdzhikov said.

As regards the executive agencies, irregularities were found at the Road Infrastructure Agency in public procurementsfor the maintenance of Hemus and Trakia Motorway and the tunnels on them. A procurement was conducted without conditions for real competition. The caretaker PM also said there were delayed procurements in some ministries, including the ministries of health and the interior.

The full report will be published on the government’s website on 20th of February.