Life in the most corrupt member state of the EU
Tags: European Union, Life, Politics, Bulgaria, Corruption

2020 Protests in Sofia

If you’ve read my bio, you know that I am half Bulgarian. I go there to see family and friends at least once a year, and I’ve always felt attached to Bulgaria. However, there’s a huge problem in Bulgaria that the European Union and other countries in Europe don’t seem to be worried with: corruption.

In 2019, Transparency International issued a ranking of countries based on the Corruption Perception Index; out of all 27 member states of the EU, Bulgaria was last with a score of 43% (the least corrupt state, Denmark, scored 87%).

To Bulgarians, it is not an unknown issue, I’ve spoken about it to my family in friends there and they seem to be completely aware of this, and they have to suffer the consequences.

In 2019, BNT1 (Bulgaria’s main television broadcaster), revealed that Boyko Borisov’s party (GERB), which had won the elections for the third time consecutively, had taken in 13 lv. per vote instead of 9 lv. Judging by my family’s reaction, it seemed to be absolutely normal.

Here are just some more examples:

In 2007, the American “U. S. Congressional Quarterly” magazine revealed that Boyko Borisov was directly linked to one of the most dangerous mobsters in Bulgaria, linked to around 30 unresolved muders.

In 2011, Bulgarian newspaper “Galeria” revealed a tape where Borisov was asking the head of the Customs Agency Vanyo Tanov to not investigate a brewery’s illegal tax activity and crimes.

Prime Minsiter Boyko Borisov

Boyko Borisov doesn’t seem to hide it either; in June this year, a picture of him laying half-naked in a bed with a handgun and stacks of Euro-currency banknotes was released.

But the question is, how does the ordinary Bulgarian live with such a corrupt government?

The short answer would “badly”. But there’s more to say about it. Whilst government officials are filling their pockets with banknotes, the average Bulgarian doesn’t earn enough to live well; some pensioners only earn 150 lv. per month, which can easily go once the electricity and heating bills are paid. Young people don’t go to work; they know full well that if they get a regular job, they still won’t be able to live well enough. This eventually pushes some to take part in criminal organisations in order to provide for themselves and their family.

Furthermore, the new healthcare system that has been in place since the fall of communism in 1990 has greatly affected the Bulgarian population; my grandmother is diabetic, and has to pay 70 lv. per month for her medicine (10 lv. government discount included).

On top of all that, many universities that used by free now require future students to pay a tuition fee, often without help from the government.

Taxes on corporations and businesses have been lowered, but taxes on income for the what-used-to-be middle class have not.

All this to say, that the quality of life in the most corrupt member state of the EU and indeed the poorest (trailing behind Romania) is rather questionable when you see the quality of life other EU countries have. Yet, the EU still continues to “fund” projects in Bulgaria and doesn’t seem to be worried about the ordinary Bulgarian too much.