Sofia echo 6 March 2010
Exclusively in English: The full transcript of President Georgi Purvanov’s meeting with Finance Minister Simeon Dyankov
Following Finance Minister Simeon Dyankov’s March 1 2010 appearance on Nova Televisia’s Ivan and Andrei chat show, President Georgi Purvanov’s office asked Dyankov to explain his position on references to Purvanov’s alleged properties abroad worth billions - or resign.
On March 5 2010, Dyankov met Purvanov at Dyankov’s request to clear up the issue. After the meeting, Dyankov refused to comment on specifics of what was discussed, saying only that the meeting had been &
quot;
a constructive one&
quot;
.
A few hours later, the Presidency published the full transcript of the meeting on its website, which made Prime Minister Boiko Borissov say that Purvanov had started a war against the Government.
This is the only English transition of the edited version of the transcript:
Georgi Purvanov: Yes, I am listening
Simeon Dyankov: Good day. Thank you for the meeting and for your time. After some thought I decided that it would be useful (to meet) and that’s why I want to thank you for answering my request for a meeting so that we can clear up what I believe is a misunderstanding – what happened after my appearance on Ivan and Andrei show on March 1.
(Editor’s note: Dyankov was asked whether he said that Purvanov owned luxury properties in the US, Dubai and Europe to which he said &
quot;
I don’t remember saying such a thing. We talked about other things with the President but this is not something I have said&
quot;
. He was then asked whether it was true that Purvanov was a young billionaire to which Dyankov replied: &
quot;
he (Purvanov) is definitely not young&
quot;
).
I have brought the transcript from the entire show with me. I guess you might have seen it already. I’ve brought it so that we can see that I never meant any harm and that there was nothing premeditated in my behaviour.
I want to say two things: First, the quote I was asked to comment on by the TV host was definitely not mine. By that moment, I had never said anything of the kind. Secondly, I believe that your team might have provided you with some incomplete information about what I actually said on the show. What I was trying to say was that this quote was not mine. I said it twice as I was trying to get out of the subject.
Given the entertaining nature of the show, maybe I did not manage to escape the situation in the best possible way, or this is what your team claims. However, this was my goal (to drop the subject). My idea was that this was not my quote, I have never said it and I wanted to drop the subject. So now when you have seen the full transcript of the show, I hope that there will be some understanding on your behalf about the situation I was in and that this is a misunderstanding.
In times of crisis, and in general, there should be no misunderstandings between state institutions. This is valid especially in times of crisis when we have so many things on our agenda such as the Budget, the ERMII mechanism, for which I want to thank you for helping a lot last week in your talks in Brussels. These are the issues on my agenda and any such misunderstandings are simply keeping me off my goals, those of the Government and your goals too. This is what I wanted to say.
Georgi Purvanov: Thank you. First I suggest we clear up one previous issue since we haven’t seen each other. You Mr. Minister, lied about the money which was drawn from the Presidency’s bank account (at the end of 2009, for some days the Presidency bank account as left empty, in what was described by the Finance Ministry as a misunderstanding) and which put us in 10-day long argument in the media, and we were a subject to a lot of speculations and comments.
We also had an argument on which history will be the judge, but you definitely made some quite rough comments and statements about my team (Last year Dyankov called some of the ideas in a report compiled by economic experts for Purvanov &
quot;
imbecilic&
quot;
)
Simeon Dyankov: I am sorry, is this about the Budget?
Georgi Purvanov: My question now is why you lied about the money that was drawn from the Presidency’s bank account?
Simeon Dyankov: No, I did not lie about this. As you know I was away when the issue surfaced, I was in Plovdiv. I asked my team and got answers. I don’t think that I have lied nor that my team….
Georgi Purvanov: You said, and this is recorded in the media, that the money was not drawn but that it simply never got transferred in the first place. We have the bank records which clearly show what got into the bank account, at what time and what was drawn out.
Simeon Dyankov: I count on my team and this was what they told me.
Georgi Purvanov: What you said, however, was that the President was misled. You did not say that you were misled. I remember this very well and before our current meeting, I checked the facts in the media. I mean that we have a series of events, Mr Minister, and facts which show that you clearly have a certain attitude towards the institution (The Presidency).
Simeon Dyankov: That is not true.
Georgi Purvanov: Even in this last case you are still provoking a conflict between institutions. I watched this material very well (The Ivan and Andrei Show). I don’t accept the scenario that I have been misled by my team about it. I have read not just the transcript but also watched the show and I am very well aware how such shows work.
I have no doubt that this was a well-designed attack. That’s why I categorically insist that you, in your capacity of minister, clear up this issue to the public. Mr. Minister, I now speak in my personal capacity, I will later speak on behalf of the institution. It might be a little bit too emotional but I have a name which I have inherited from my parents and this is a name which I want to leave to my children without any stains on it. And such speculations cast a dark shadow on my family name.
Simeon Dyankov: I understand that.
Georgi Purvanov: If you do, why do you take part in this scenario, and I have no doubt that you are part of it. Why do you let institutions become involved in it?
Simeon Dyankov: Why do you think that I am part of this scenario? Being part of it helps me in no way.
Georgi Purvanov: I know it from what I have seen, Mr. Minister. Why did you discuss the President in the context of tax checks, billionaires etc? You mentioned only the name of the President.
Simeon Dyankov: As you seen from the transcript, I was trying to get out of the subject. You said you have seen the whole conversation. That’s why I hope you can see how surprised I was about the quote I was asked to comment on. What I said was: no, this is not something I have said, not exactly, and that we have talked with you on other issues but not this. What I don’t accept is that you consider all my TV appearances as an attack against you.
I have no interest in playing such a game because you are much more powerful figure than me, much more respected than me. The crisis and all the problems we have to consider show that I am not part of this. You see that all this is damaging to me and instead of doing my work I now have to spend more time on such topics that undermine the Finance Ministry’s authority. ..
No, I beg you to understand, that I am not part of any such thing. I was obviously surprised by this quote. And now I suffer more negative consequences from it than you. I also have a name to defend. As you know I have been out of Bulgaria for a long time together with my family. I came back to help Bulgaria with its financial matters as this is my area of expertise. So please…
Georgi Purvanov: Are you serious that this row is more damaging to you than to me?
Simeon Dyankov: Yes, I believe that at the moment it is. Instead of focusing on financial matters I have to deal with it. Please understand that this whole thing is not something I need and that I am not part of it.
Georgi Purvanov: What did your check about millionaires and billionaires in Bulgaria show?
Simeon Dyankov: In what sense?
Georgi Purvanov: This was the subject of your conversation (on Ivan and Andrei Show)
Simeon Dyankov: The check is not on millionaires and billionaires but on people who have reported more than 50 000 leva income in 2009 and who did not register under the VAT act as required. The check is still going on and as a result about 1000 people have registered under the VAT act so far. There is no check on millionaires and billionaires. It is about VAT registration and covers 4 950 people.
It will take us two more months to finish it. But you have much bigger media experience than me. I, for instance, am in Bulgaria as a financial expert, although I have worked for a large financial institution before and have had some media experience. I am here as an expert and as part of the Government. As such, I lack the experience you and other people have with the media. My honest position is that I was surprised by the quote I was asked to comment on the show because it wasn’t mine and has never been. I tried in the quickest possible way to get out of the situation but they (the hosts) kept bringing me back in. Maybe it wasn’t the most elegant way but I was trying to get out of it.
Georgi Purvanov: Why you had to get out of it Mr. Dyankov?
Simeon Dyankov: Because they asked me what I thought of this quote? I said it wasn’t mine.
Georgi Purvanov: The quote is not important, it is the truth that matters here.
Simeon Dyankov: But there is no way for me to know the truth as it is not my business. What could have I said when they were reading me the quote? I said the truth right there. This was not something I said. This is the truth.
Georgi Purvanov: At the same time what did you answer on the question of the &
quot;
young billionaire&
quot;
?
Simeon Dyankov: I said he wasn’t young. This was a show and I was trying to get out of the situation because they kept insisting three times on the issue. I will say it again. This was not ill conceived and I hope that you will believe me at least on this part. This was obviously a difficult question for me and I said the truth: this is not my quote. I hope you will believe me on this as I have no interest here….
Georgi Purvanov: I don’t believe you.
Simeon Dyankov: Fine.
Georgi Purvanov: I don’t believe you because I know how these things work and because of your rank of Minister of Finance.
Simeon Dyankov: Yes I am.
Georgi Purvanov: When you get asked a question about institutions, no matter if it is about the president, the prime minister or someone else, you the much more proper answer is: yes or no. This is the position you should have. The answer you gave
Sat Mar 06, 2010 11:42 pm
