The State Agency for National Security (SANS) will start a check together with prosecutors into the Ministry of State Administration on suspicions for abuse of power, Bulgarian-language Dnevnik daily quoted Sofia deputy prosecutor Roman Vassilev as saying on April 2 2009.

The check is the result of a tip-off from two right-wing MPs, Eleonora Nikolova and Maria Kapon.

According to the MPs, the State Administration Ministry started work on a project for creating an health care services e-portal for all of the 40 000 public administration employees.

This project, according to the two MPs, will cost more than 1.6 million leva. The Health Ministry was working on a similar project, not only for 40 000 state employees but for all Bulgarians.

This project will cost five time less than that of the State Administration Ministry, the two MPs said, which led to their allegations that there was a scheme to use the project to siphon State Administration Ministry Budget funds.

The State Administration Ministry issued a statement denying the allegations, Dnevnik said. The ministry said that the cost of the e-portal is to be 1.2 million leva (no VAT) and that it will be available not only to the 40 000 state employees but all Bulgarian citizens.

Nevertheless SANS's probe into the ministry will continue. Dnevnik said that this will be the second probe by both SANS and prosecutors in a ministry after the agency investigated the Agriculture Ministry in connection with swaps of state land for private land.