VARNA, Bulgaria, Oct. 4 (Xinhua) -- The Bulgarian government here on Wednesday approved a bill on counteraction of corruption and confiscation of illegally acquired property.
The bill, which has to be approved by the parliament, foresees the establishment of a unified independent authority, called "Commission for Combating Corruption and Illegal Assets Forfeiture," the government said in a statement.
This commission will be responsible for verification of asset declarations, establishment of conflict of interest, and preparation of court claims for seizure of the illegally acquired assets, the statement said.
Anonymous complaints against corrupt officials will not be allowed, it said.
However, the commission will not disclose the identity of those who have revealed corruption, it added.
In January, the European Commission in its Cooperation and Verification Mechanism (CVM) report said "the overall institutional set-up to fight corruption in Bulgaria remains fragmented and therefore largely ineffective."
"So far, Bulgaria has a very limited track record of concrete cases leading to final convictions in court regarding high-level corruption, the clearest way to show that the fight against corruption is a genuine priority," said the report.
