advertisement
Fri, May 25 2012
Former defence minister denies painting state-owned BMWs pink for his daughter's prom
Photo: government.bg
Nikolai Svinarov, a former defence minister of Bulgaria, has denied any knowledge of the two BMW 540 in Ashes of Roses colour, which were discovered in the ministry's vehicle park by the new Defence Minister Nikolai Mladenov on August 28 2009.
The existence of the two vehicles in the peculiar colour raised a lot of questions about how the Defence Ministry had been spending Bulgarian taxpayers' money.
According to Bulgarian-language Standart, the first BMW was bought during the term of Svinarov and was used by his daughter for her prom in 2004. Speaking on Nova Televisia on September 1 2009, Svinarov denied any knowledge of the two luxury vehicles.
"I don't remember buying the two cars or, as minister, allowing the purchase. You have to understand that this has happened five years ago and I am not in a state to remember everything I have signed for today," he said.
"I have no knowledge of the two cars, but this issue has to be checked because there are certain bodies within the ministry who have their own budgets and can make their own purchases," he said.
He said that he was not involved in organising his daughter's prom so he did not known what car she used. "It was something similar to these two BMWs but I don't remember the model," he said.
By phone, current Defence Minister Mladenov said that the two BMWs made in 1995 were bought during Svinarov's 2001 to 2005 term of office.
"The problem here is not if someone had asked for the two cars to be repainted, but the careless way the ministry's budget has been managed. These (cars) are the symbol of this carelessness. And because of this carelessness I would ask the two cars to be sold at public auction in front of the ministry because such things have no place in Defence Ministry," Mladenov said.
"It is the minister who holds the entire responsibility. You can't excuse yourself by saying that you have been signing more than 1000 documents a day. One has to be careful what one is signing," Mladenov said.
The "Pink BMWs" story broke after Mladenov escorted Prime Minister Boiko Borissov and a group of journalists around the ministry, showing them some his discoveries after taking office on July 27 2009.
Next to the extremely luxurious dining room, Borissov was shown the two BMWs. The peculiar colour, which some media already called pink, made many ask why the two luxury vehicles were bought.
The situation became even more peculiar when it was announced that they were black when bought, and then someone from the ministry decided to paint them in the extremely rare and expensive colour.
According to bTV, repainting the two vehicles in this particular colour currently would cost up to 4000 leva each.
The existence of the two vehicles in the peculiar colour raised a lot of questions about how the Defence Ministry had been spending Bulgarian taxpayers' money.
According to Bulgarian-language Standart, the first BMW was bought during the term of Svinarov and was used by his daughter for her prom in 2004. Speaking on Nova Televisia on September 1 2009, Svinarov denied any knowledge of the two luxury vehicles.
"I don't remember buying the two cars or, as minister, allowing the purchase. You have to understand that this has happened five years ago and I am not in a state to remember everything I have signed for today," he said.
"I have no knowledge of the two cars, but this issue has to be checked because there are certain bodies within the ministry who have their own budgets and can make their own purchases," he said.
He said that he was not involved in organising his daughter's prom so he did not known what car she used. "It was something similar to these two BMWs but I don't remember the model," he said.
By phone, current Defence Minister Mladenov said that the two BMWs made in 1995 were bought during Svinarov's 2001 to 2005 term of office.
"The problem here is not if someone had asked for the two cars to be repainted, but the careless way the ministry's budget has been managed. These (cars) are the symbol of this carelessness. And because of this carelessness I would ask the two cars to be sold at public auction in front of the ministry because such things have no place in Defence Ministry," Mladenov said.
"It is the minister who holds the entire responsibility. You can't excuse yourself by saying that you have been signing more than 1000 documents a day. One has to be careful what one is signing," Mladenov said.
The "Pink BMWs" story broke after Mladenov escorted Prime Minister Boiko Borissov and a group of journalists around the ministry, showing them some his discoveries after taking office on July 27 2009.
Next to the extremely luxurious dining room, Borissov was shown the two BMWs. The peculiar colour, which some media already called pink, made many ask why the two luxury vehicles were bought.
The situation became even more peculiar when it was announced that they were black when bought, and then someone from the ministry decided to paint them in the extremely rare and expensive colour.
According to bTV, repainting the two vehicles in this particular colour currently would cost up to 4000 leva each.
-
Print
-
Send via email
- Translate to
-
Share:
Comments
To post comments, please, Login or Register.
Please read the The Sofia Echo forum comments policy.
The ministry of fun
A story of a defence ministry, real estate deals, entertainment and pink BMWs
New claims of wasteful spending by Bulgaria’s Stanishev government
On top of indications that Bulgaria’s former government spent more than 600 million leva in its final days in office, media reports say that Sergei Stanishev’s cabinet blew 10 million leva on ‘quasi-science’ copied off the internet.
More in this category
Saab awarded $2.4M military training equipment contract in Bulgaria
The funding is provided under the foreign military sales programme of the US army's Program Executive Office of Simulation, Training and Instrumentation.
Two Brits fined for hooliganism in Bulgaria’s Veliko Turnovo
The UK nationals were arrested after throwing beer bottles at people after being refused entry to a restaurant that had closed for the night.
Tourism: Bulgaria to spend 300M leva on restoring castles, ancient sites
Restoration and development projects include Madara Horseman, Arbanassi fortress, Magura cave.
Sovereign Order of Malta assists hospital in Bulgaria’s Iskrets
Simeon Saxe-Coburg and his spouse Margarita opened a new heating and insulation system at the Tsar Ferdinand Hospital for Pulmonary Diseases in Iskrets, a project implemented thanks to the Embassy of the Sovereign Order of Malta in Sofia and the Nando Peretti Foundation.
Bulgarian Parliament passes confiscation act
According to the law's provisions, the commission will have the power to investigate individuals without prior notification and would not require a criminal conviction in order to launch an investigation.
© 2000-2012, Sofia Echo Media Ltd.
Web Design by RIZN
Sofia Echo Media is part of the Economedia Group.
The news and information content on this website is provided by our editorial team and is copyrighted.
Any unauthorised reproduction or use of it is strictly forbidden. Reproduction of this website's content is permitted only
with prior written permission from the Editor-in-Chief, should be propertly acredited and provide an active link back to our site.
Comments posted by the website's visitors are independent of the editorial materials and do not represent the views of sofiaecho.com.
Sofia Echo Media cannot be held responsible for the statements contained in visitor comments.
The percentаge change in the shares' prices are based on the price of the last transaction of the current session compared to the
price of the last transaction of the previous session. Bulgarian Stock Exchange data is not real-time, but updated every 15 minutes,
and should not be used as a basis for decisions about buying or selling stock options.
- Economedia Group portfolio:
- In Bulgarian:
-
Business:
Капитал,
Кариери,
Пазари,
Ho Re Mag,
Регал,
Градът.bg,
Одит,
Foton.bg,
Online shop
- News: Дневник, Европа, Foreign Policy - България
- IT: IDG.BG, Computerworld, PC World, CIO, Networkworld
- Entertainment: Бакхус
-
In English:
The Sofia Echo
Montly,
I would do a movie about the US where they had a Ponzi (Medoff) at the head of NASDAQ.
That's one joke, we could never top...;)))
Stefcho,
laugh all your want, but the US will end up the real Communist one.
When I read your news, I am shocked at all the social justice talk. It's worse (or worser;) than anything we had, because you folks actually believe the crap.
Watch Obama raise taxes even higher on the "evil rich" to finance his Commie wet dreams.
Don't worry - you are safe in Capitalist Bulgaria, where small business pays 10% flat tax;)
Your idea of better seems to me to be worse and worser. It could also be a comedy based on some of the things that go on here. It's laughable to hear this people speak of things that they did and seem to suddenly forget. They are raping this country and the people don't get outraged. Why? because this is Bulgaria and that's just the way it is and everyone excepts it, it's very sad actually. You can look at every aspect of this country and fine something to laugh at or think how can this be but it will [...]
Read the full comment not change, it is what it is, a communist country.
Its the socialist creed "all men are equal, but some are more equal than others". Ministry of Defence - Pink! They really did not give a damn did they!
should do a movie about Bulgaria...
its gets better and better and better...