The National Assembly as a Policy Maker in the Fight Against Organized Crime and Political Corruption

Abstract

Current research, commissioned by RiskMonitor Foundation shows that the Bulgarian National Assembly has still unutilized potential to play a significant role in overcoming serious problems concerning organized crime and political corruption. Based on the empirical findings, the current paper seeks solution of the fundamental problem with the passive role of the legislature in formulating and implementing policies aimed at organized crime and corruption. The paper tries to explain the magnitude of the problem and the impossibility of radical and permanent change without having thorough institutional reform. The paper offers a number of short-term, still applicable solutions that could restrict the negative effects of the National Assembly’s work deficits. However, a completely new stage in the fight against organized crime and political corruption can be expected only as a result of grand institutional reform that prescribes the parliament a key role in this policy sector by making the Prosecutor general and the Minister of Interior subjects of parliamentary control.