site.btaActing Prosecutor General Calls for Prompt Action on Election-related Offence Reports
All reports of suspected election-related offences must be acted on promptly and thoroughly so that evidence capable of standing up in court can be collected, acting Prosecutor General Vanya Stefanova said on Thursday. She was speaking at a national meeting of the Interior Ministry leadership on the preparations for the October 25 presidential election.
Countering offences against citizens' political rights, particularly those involving the illegal financing of elections and manipulation of voters' choices, is becoming increasingly complex for a number of reasons, some of them related to the development of technology and communications, Stefanova said. According to her, this clearly demonstrates the need to coordinate efforts at national and local level.
Stefanova said the prosecution service would provide assistance and cooperation not only through the national inter-agency unit that has been established, but would also take all action provided for by law to prevent any distortion of the vote. "We should not forget that the effectiveness of our work is measured not by the number of case files, but by their substance. In every case we must work in such a way as to collect admissible evidence that will stand up in court," she said.
She identified systematic preventive work ahead of the elections as the top priority in preventing election-related offences, noting that this falls entirely within the powers of the Interior Ministry.
"I hope that the latest Election Code revisions providing for machine voting will contribute to greater transparency in the electoral process and reduce electoral manipulation, but this should not make us complacent. I am counting on you to ensure that trained specialists are available everywhere to respond adequately to any problem," Stefanova said.
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