Verheugen: Bulgaria not alone on corruption

During a two-day trip to Sofia which ended today (28 August), Commission Vice President Günther Verheugen said Bulgarian authorities are doing better at fighting corruption than suggested in the press, highlighting the fact that corruption and ineffective judiciary systems are problems common to other EU members. EURACTIV’s partner in Bulgaria Dnevnik reports.

Verheugen, who was in charge of EU enlargement from 1999 to 2004, commended Bulgaria’s President Georgi Parvanov for his country’s “successful” EU integration, saying the country had lived up to the bloc’s expectations. 

He downplayed the significance of a highly critical Commission report on Bulgaria’s progress towards EU standards since its accession, which led to the suspension of hundreds of millions of euros of funding for the country in July this year over fears that they could be misused. 

According to Verheugen, “if a similar study were made to the same extent concerning other EU countries, we would be surprised what happens there”. Indeed, only Bulgaria and Romania are subjected to such reviews under the so-called “verification mechanism” contained in their accession agreements. 

He nevertheless said he was “worried about Bulgaria’s image” and urged the whole of Bulgarian society to join in the government’s efforts to make its administration more efficient. 

Verheugen further welcomed Bulgaria’s enthusiasm for the Union, saying he sees no euroscepticism there except among the ranks of “the vociferous opposition outside” – a reference to Bulgaria’s populist ‘Ataka’ (Attack) party, which uses symbols resembling those of Nazi Germany and uses music by Hitler’s favourite composer, Wagner. 

“Wagner’s music, which we hear at the rallies of the ‘Ataka’ party, awakes unpleasant memories for the Germans,” Verheugen said, hinting that he hoped the party would have less success in next year’s European elections than it did in the May 2007 ones, when it won 14.2% of the Bulgarian ballot, sending three MEPs to the European Parliament. 

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