Bulgaria: Caretaker Justice Minister Orders Audits in Prisons, Registry Agency

Presenting his team and the Ministry's priorities on Tuesday, newly-appointed caretaker Justice Minister Yanaki Stoilov said that an inspection started on Monday in prisons and remand centres of their work since 2017 to date, in response to claims of businessman Svetoslav Ilchovski before Parliament, which was meanwhile disbanded, that records incidents of bullying of a prisoner. Stoilov said the prosecuting magistracy will be approached to question the persons involved in the case named by Ilchovski.

Stoilov said further that checks start in the Registry Agency and the Commercial Register managed by it, as well as in the Bulgarian Citizenship Directorate and the Register of Special Pledges. The aim of the checks is to improve the administrative services to the public and avert irregularities. Also, all public procurement procedures in the Ministry will be audited. The findings are expected by the end of the month.

Stoilov said a key priority is the organization of the July 11 early parliamentary elections. He said this is not the hardest task of the Ministry as it is in charge of arranging the voting only in prisons and remand facilities, where no more than 1,500 voters will be eligible to vote on July 11.

Other priorities are easy issuing of documents and "intolerance to malicious practices that have existed since long," such as the Bulgarian citizenship, registry entries, and the conditions in prisons and remand facilities.

Investigative officer Maria Pavlova, who is a former caretaker justice minister, and lawyer Ivan Demerdjiev will be Stoilov's deputies. BTA

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