site.btaVazrazhdane Demand Resignation of Radioactive Wastes Executive Director

Vazrazhdane demand the resignation of the Executive Director of State Enterprise Radioactive Waste, Dilyan Petrov, MP Yordan Todorov told journalists here on Thursday. His parliamentary group also call for an investigation against Petrov and criminal procedures under the law. If he does not resign voluntarily, Vazrazhdane will seek responsibility from the Minister of Energy, the MP stressed. In Todorov's words, Petrov is a GERB creation, appointed to Radioactive Waste in 2010.

Vazrazhdane's move comes after Wednesday's audit report of the Bulgarian National Audit Office, which established significant delays in the construction of a national repository for long-term storage of low- and intermediate-level radioactive waste. Todorov noted that this was the first audit of Radioactive Waste since 2013. Among the report's other findings is that the public procurement contract was awarded through direct award, which is in violation of the Public Procurement Act. Petrov was appointed Executive Director in 2010, and such competitive procedures are not done there, meaning this is a way of management, Todorov concluded and noted that there is a lack of any control.

Vazrazhdane said they would continue to submit alerts, appeal to regulators, and fight corruption. On Wednesday, they filed an alert with the State Agency for National Security in connection with "substantiated evidence of corruption at the Kozloduy Nuclear Power Plant concerning equipment", on which the plant's safe operation depends, Todorov said. According to him, the resignation of Kozloduy Nuclear Power Plan CEO Ivan Andreev should also be demanded. Todorov said he would also ask for a hearing in the parliamentary Energy Committee on this issue.