Politicians attacked BIRD after revelations about the candidates for mayor of Sofia

Investigations into Vasil Terziev’s company holdings and Vanya Grigorova’s property status provoked violent reactions from their fans on the social network Facebook and attacks from politicians. Lena Borislavova accused our website of publishing “suggestions and insinuations”, and Vanya Grigorova qualified us on national air as a “thrower”.

According to Lena Borislavova , “suggestions and insinuations” is the information that companies with the participation of Vasil Terziev have won European projects for over two million levs, in which there is nothing wrong, and also one of the companies is indebted to the NRA with 74,000 levs.

We informed about the property status of Vanya Grigorova and her association “Solidarity Bulgaria”, which receives EU subsidies, days before the run-off. Grigorova’s sharp reaction came on the occasion of the revelation that in July 2021 she had acquired a property of one acre in the village of Ravno Pole for only BGN 9979. or 5000 euros. The same plot was announced by its previous owner for sale at a price of 37,500 euros just a month before the deal with Grigorova. The information was confirmed to BIRD by phone by the real estate broker on whose website the ad is located. “Bird wrote that my property is next to golf courses – there are such in Ravno Pole, but mine is in Verila, this is not the same area,” Vanya Grigorova said on national air. This is not true. BIRD has never mentioned a golf course next to its cheap lot.

After acquiring the land at this apparently simulated price, Grigorova and her life partner received a mortgage loan from DSK for BGN 350,000. and in a few months they built a two-storey house. Attacks by politicians and institutions on media outlets that disseminate information that is unpleasant for them or their political allies is not a new practice. In most cases, this leads to an increase in the effect of the revelations and their upgrading with new information and previously unknown facts.

***

Разследващата журналистика е разузнаването на гражданите. BIRD се финансира от дарения. Ние не публикуваме реклами. Не получаваме държавни субсидии. Не разчитаме на грантове. Финансирането чрез малки дарения от читатели е гаранция за нашата независимост. Включете се, за да продължим да разкриваме злоупотреби и да държим отговорни властимащите. Използваме Вашите пари за хонорари на журналистите, командировки, изграждане и поддръжка на нашите информационни системи, такси за фирмени и имотни регистри у нас и по света, придобиване на техника и специално оборудване, осигуряване на нашата безопасност и други важни работни мисии. Важно: Ако дарявате всеки месец това ще ни даде възможност да планираме и организираме нашата работа. Благодарим Ви! Нас ни има, защото Вас Ви има!

This post is also available in: Български (Bulgarian)