More serious revelations are coming about the spending of large public resources through public procurement and large payments, Interior Minister Ivan Demerdzhiev told journalists at the Council of Ministers.
According to him, the work of the Ministry of Interior is mainly focused on the way in which funds are spent on public procurement and large payments. Demerdzhiev added that “there are too many corruption models that are yet to be revealed“, but he did not want to name specific names.
Signal to the National Revenue Agency for Peevski's expenses
The Minister also commented on the signal he sent to the National Revenue Agency with a request to verify available data on significant expenses made by the Chairman of the Movement for Rights and Freedoms Delyan Peevski. Demerdzhiev said that the data received from the services is correct, but since a claim has been made about another source of funding, it must be verified.
According to him, the company that paid for the flights and provided the plane for Peevski to use belongs to the father of the Bulgarian ambassador to the UAE. The minister specified that the father was not questioned because no pre-trial proceedings have been initiated, and the checks were carried out on the basis of documents.
„I don't see anything political“
In response to a question about whether his actions constitute a political bluff, Demerdzhiev said: „I don't see anything political in clarifying an issue of public interest.“ According to him, the Ministry of Interior does not use protected witnesses and does not initiate criminal proceedings without data, but presents the facts and provides them to the competent authorities.
The minister also said that attempts have been made against him in this direction for three years, including through inspections, which he described as absurd. He called these allegations insinuations and an attempt to divert attention.
Inspections on the guardrails
Regarding the inspections surrounding the company related to the guardrails, Demerdzhiev indicated that there is a suspicion that the guardrails themselves do not have the necessary quality certificates. If this is confirmed, in his words, in addition to a possible diversion of funds, it may also be a risk to the life and health of citizens. However, the minister specified that this has not yet been confirmed.
BTA recalls that last week the government announced at a briefing that Delyan Peevski's flights were financed through public procurement funds for guardrails. Later in the National Assembly, Peevski called the allegations a lie.
The topic remains related to the inspections of the Ministry of Interior, the National Revenue Agency and public data on public procurement, and according to Demerdzhiev, it is there that the next revelations are expected.
Sources: BTA