Sun, Nov 08 2009

New Interior Ministry strongman

Petkov firm on restructuring of ministry

Mon, Sep 26 2005 01:00 CET byStaff Reporter 361 Views

PRESIDENT Georgi Purvanov has appointed the former head of the National Police Service, General Major Ilia Iliev, as Interior Ministry chief secretary.


Iliev succeeds Boiko Borrisov, who after four years in the post, quit on September 16 to go into politics.


Borissov gave as his official reason for resigning his frustration at what he saw as the chief secretary's post being made redundant by the placing of political appointees in the ministry.


Interior Minister Roumen Petkov nominated Iliev for the position on September 20.


Iliev, 44, has worked for the Interior Ministry since May 1 1984. He headed the Interior Ministry regional directorate in Pleven, Petkov's native town of which Petkov formerly was mayor. After serving in the post from 2001 to 2003, Iliev was appointed head of the National Police Service by the Simeon Saxe-Coburg government, with the assent of President Purvanov.


With his appointment as Interior Ministry chief secretary, Iliev was promoted from major-general to lieutenant-general.


As Iliev's successor as the head of the National Police Service, Purvanov appointed the head of the National Service for Combating Organised Crime, (NSCOC) Major-General Valentin Petrov, a university friend of Petkov.


Purvanov issued a decree promoting Petrov to lieutenant-general. The head of the National Security Service, Major-General Ivan Chobanov, was also promoted to lieutenant-general.


"The General Directorate of Police, which is yet to be established, will be headed by General Petrov," Petkov said after announcing the nominations.


"My primary reason for nominating General Iliev for the post of chief secretary is the need to have a strong individual in this post, someone who is familiar with the work of the Interior Ministry, has the will to co-ordinate and is ready to bear responsibility," Petkov said.


Petkov said that General Iliev was coping successfully with applying a "police close to the public" strategy.


According to Petkov, the Interior Ministry chief secretary should be an established police officer. He said that the changes to the ministry were being done on a strategic basis and were not piecemeal or temporary.

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