Two houses belonging to commissioner-designate Ekaterina Zaharieva and her husband Angel Zahariev in Bulgaria and Greece have aroused interest among MEPs, Euractiv Bulgaria learned from European Parliament sources.
The questions arose on the occasion of Zaharieva’s declaration of interest filed with the European Parliament to be scrutinised by its legal affairs committee, known as JURI, ahead of her hearing.
Euractiv Bulgaria obtained the 9-page declaration from a source. The declarations are not public prior to the candidates’ confirmation.
In the declaration, Zaharieva indicates, among other owned properties, a house in Sofia of 484 square meters, built in 2018 on a 600 square meter plot acquired in 2007, as well as a “house with studios” of 200 square meters in Halkidiki, Greece, built in 2019 on land acquired in 2008.
Zaharieva indicates a current account of 122 thousand leva (€61,000) and an asset in favour of her husband’s company, “Anzac Invest” OOD of 572 622 leva (€292,777), as well as savings totalling €38,000. No loans or mortgages are listed.
Zaharieva’s declaration also says that her husband gave an investment credit to his firm “Anzak Invest” OOD (also known as “Anzac Invest”) to the amount of 572,622 BGN .
The MEPs’ curiosity was aroused by the lack of explanation as to where the funds for building the real estate came from when Zaharieva was foreign minister.
Zaharieva’s name is mentioned in several cases, including the illegal sale of Bulgarian passports in 2018. Zaharieva did not answer Euractiv’s questions about her past.
The legal committee of the European Parliament is expected to rule on the declarations on 18 October.
In the meantime, it is possible that the Legal Committee would ask MEPs additional questions.
In her declaration, Zaharieva indicates five short-term missions for two months each as a project manager during the period 2017-2023 without detailing their content. It is not clear whether these appointments conflict with her work as foreign minister in 2017-2021.
After 2021, Zaharieva was an MP until September 19 of this year, when she resigned in connection with her candidacy for European commissioner.
Declarations filed in Bulgaria
Zaharieva’s declarations to the Bulgarian Anti-corruption Commission provide much more detailed information about her and her husband’s property.
Her first open property declaration is from 2016, when she was appointed as deputy prime minister and minister of justice.
She declared three apartments in Sofia, acquired in 2005, 2008, 2009. Two of the apartments are jointly owned by her husband, Angel Zahariev. The third (92 square meters), which is only hers, was purchased in 2005 for BGN 51,003 (€26,000).
The 94-square-meter apartment she bought with her husband in 2009 costs BGN 205,350 (€105,000).
The price of the apartment Zaharieva bought with her husband in 2008 is suspiciously low—62 sq.m. for BGN 23,050 (EUR 11,500).
Already in 2016, Zaharieva declared that she was building the house in Sofia, a 10-year project she started with her husband in 2008.
The plot for the house in Greece was also declared back in 2008.
In 2016, Zaharieva declared ½ of a store in Pazardzhik, acquired in 1996, for BGN 74,800 (€38,200).
In the declaration filed in 2016, Angel Zahariev declared €75,000 and $15,000 in bank deposits in Bulgaria.
For the first time, incomes in Bulgaria started to be declared with the declarations submitted in 2018. This year, Angel Zahariev had an income of BGN 211,000 and Zaharieva, BGN 66,000.
In the 2018 declaration, they announced that they sold half of the plot in Greece for BGN 117,350.
Between 2019 and 2021, Zaharieva declared an income of BGN 230,000, mainly from salaries. For these three years, Zaharieva declared her husband’s income of 545,000 BGN.
According to Zaharieva’s declaration from 2021, her husband gave three loans to private individuals totaling BGN 350,000. The largest loan is for BGN 268,000. The declaration does not specify who these persons are.
(Georgi Gotev, Krassen Nikolov | Euractiv.bg)
Source: euractiv.com
