2024-07-11 14:23:32
The deputy governor of the Bulgarian National Bank (BNB), Andrey Gyurov, who is on unpaid leave, called on the BNB’s Board of Directors not to make a decision regarding his possible dismissal before the court’s ruling on his appeal against a decision of the Anti-Corruption Commission (CPC), in which it is stated that it is incompatible with the position held. He has already appealed this decision to the administrative court.
The Board of the BNB will meet on July 16 in connection with the created case. At the meeting, it is expected to assess whether the decision of the KPK on the incompatibility of the deputy governor of the BNB is a reason for his dismissal from the post at the central bank. In this case, the BNB will only determine whether the presence of incompatibility is grounds for the release of its member, and this will subsequently be sent to the parliament for a final decision. The decision of the Board of the BNB, which is different from that of the KPK, can be appealed to the Supreme Administrative Court.
In the position of Gyurov, received in BTA after an inquiry, it is also noted that a decision that does not correspond to the facts and the law will endanger the process of the accession of the Republic of Bulgaria to the Eurozone.
The following is the full text of Andrey Gyurov’s position:
On June 29, 2024, I filed an appeal against the decision of the KPK regarding alleged incompatibility with my position as deputy governor of the BNB. The appeal highlights the many legal and factual problems with this decision. It is the result of unlawfully exceeding the powers of the CPC, as well as an obvious violation of the requirements of European Union law and our national legislation. I expect the administrative court to properly examine all the presented evidence and arguments and only after that the BNB Governing Board will rule on the case. The fact that the judgment of the court is not waited for creates conditions for serious legal uncertainty.
The fact that I was a partner in a limited liability company does not constitute a violation of the BNB Law, which prohibits participation in unlimited liability companies. Also, the BNB Law does not prohibit participation in management boards of non-profit legal entities. It is forbidden to carry out activities without the permission of the Management Board of the BNB, but there are no facts about such activities. There cannot be such, since long before my candidacy as deputy manager was discussed, I duly resigned from both associations and did not carry out any activity in them. The associations themselves testify to this.
I have informed the European Commission and the European Central Bank about the case. As a member state of the EU, the Republic of Bulgaria should guarantee the independence of the central bank’s decision-making body, namely the Governing Council of the BNB. The protection of this independence requires that the grounds for early termination of the mandate of the members of the Board of Directors be established only by an act of the BNB and then on the exceptional grounds specified in EU law, which are not present in this case.
It is the responsibility of the members of the BNB Board of Directors to adopt a decision that protects the independence of the institution from undue external influence and is based on a correct reading of the requirements of the law. A decision that does not correspond to the facts and the law will jeopardize the process of accession of the Republic of Bulgaria to the Eurozone.