Complaint to Kövesi Regarding Misuse of the Bulgarka Nature Park Plan: Belev Seeks Power

A non-governmental organization has sent a complaint to the "Office of European Delegated Prosecutors" and "KPKONPI" (Commission for Anti-Corruption and Illegal Assets Forfeiture) regarding the misuse of European funds related to the commissioning and development of the management plan for the Bulgarka Nature Park, reports Eco News.

There are suspicions of conflict of interest and double financing of the same activities as previous contracts awarded by the Bulgarka Park Directorate.

On April 1, 2024, with decision No. 3238, the Supreme Administrative Court overturned a decision of the Bulgarian Council of Ministers, No. 894 from December 30, 2021, published in the State Gazette No. 2 / 2022, which approved the management plan for the Bulgarka Nature Park. The complaints against the Council of Ministers' decision were initially filed by the National Association "Bulgarian Black Sea" and subsequently by the Municipality of Gabrovo.

Both the Supreme Administrative Court and the first-instance Sofia Administrative Court cited serious legal violations in the preparation of the plan by the consortium "Bulgarka Union 2013," led by team leader Toma Georgiev Belev. This consortium includes the companies "Sterna Consult," "WWF-Bulgaria," and "Marsilea" Ltd., which is 100% owned by WWF.

The court's decision outlines the non-compliance with procedures, intentional disregard for mandatory phases related to informing local people and municipal authorities, failure to reflect their opinions and comments, and other significant violations.

The complaint claims that these issues raise doubts that the client—the Directorate of Bulgarka Nature Park—and its then-director, Maya Radeva, did not exercise the necessary oversight in the execution of the contract. Another concerning fact is that Toma Belev and Maya Radeva were both members of the management board of the private NGO "Association of Parks in Bulgaria" during the commissioning and development of the plan, raising suspicions about the contracting process and possible corrupt practices. Furthermore, this is not the only contract that the park's directorate has awarded to entities and individuals associated with Toma Belev, WWF-Bulgaria, and Sterna Consult.

Before the establishment of "Bulgarka Union 2013," contracts from the Bulgarka Park Directorate were also awarded to "Bulgarka Union 2011," which also included the Swiss NGO WWF, its company "Marsilea" Ltd., and the NGO "Green Balkans," of which Toma Belev was the chairman. Prior to this, an inventory of the park's forests was commissioned and paid for by "Green Balkans," again under Maya Radeva's direction. In other words, all contracts leading up to the management plan were awarded to entities connected to Toma Belev. It is also noteworthy that "WWF-Bulgaria" is managed by Toma Belev's wife, Veselina Kavrakova.

Further evidence of the close ties between Toma Belev and Maya Radeva is her appointment in 2022 as director of the Regional Inspectorate of Environment and Water in Veliko Tarnovo, personally appointed by Belev during his tenure as Deputy Minister.

The Supreme Administrative Court identified serious procedural violations in the submission of the plan for approval by the Council of Ministers. The mandatory High Expert Environmental Council, which should have reviewed the current version of the plan and addressed comments from other ministries, was not convened, and the council members did not vote. There are reports of significant pressure from the Ministry of Environment and Water's leadership, including Minister Borislav Sandov and Deputy Minister Toma Belev, to avoid holding a new expert council.

The most significant concern is the alleged deliberate abuse of power by Toma Belev. Since December 23, 2021, Belev has served as Deputy Minister of Environment and Water, responsible for the management plans of natural and national parks. The complainant alleges that, according to ministry employees, two weeks before his appointment, starting in mid-December 2021, Toma Belev was already present at the institution daily, issuing orders, and even had an office—a fact that can easily be verified.

The Supreme Administrative Court's decision No. 3238, rejecting the Bulgarka Park management plan, means that the European funds allocated for the plan's development are irretrievably lost. The money of European and Bulgarian taxpayers has been wasted, as there will be no management plan after spending a total of 2.6 million BGN.

The complaint makes the following requests to the European Prosecutor's Office and KPKONPI:

• To conduct a detailed and thorough investigation into how European funds were spent by the Bulgarka Park Directorate during the commissioning, development, and approval of the park's management plan.
• To determine which employees of the Bulgarka Park Directorate approved a plan that the Supreme Administrative Court found to have violated procedures and the law.
• To investigate the allocation and utilization of 8 million BGN granted under the Operational Program "Environment" by the Bulgarka Park Directorate during Maya Radeva's tenure as director.
• To examine the connections between Toma Belev and Maya Radeva in the private entity "Association of Parks in Bulgaria," particularly regarding decisions made about the purchase of numerous properties by the association and the origin of the funds, amid media reports that state park directorates, members of the association, transferred funds to the private NGO.
• To investigate contracts awarded to companies, consortia, and NGOs from "Bulgarka Union 2013" and "Bulgarka Union 2011," and whether they received previous contracts from the Bulgarka Park Directorate, as well as whether there were duplicate activities in the development of the park's management plan.
• To check whether former Deputy Minister Toma Belev pressured the administration to expedite the drafting of the plan for submission to the Council of Ministers without following legal procedures.
• To determine whether there is a conflict of interest between Belev and Radeva.

Finally, the complaint expresses hope that the mentioned institutions will act responsibly and, if violations are proven, will sanction the individuals and institutions for the irresponsible use of European funds in accordance with the law.