Bulgaria Perceived as Most Corrupt EU Member - Transparency Intl
Bulgaria lost six positions and ranked lowest - 77th, among all EU member states in the latest edition of Transparency International's Corruption Perception Index (CPI) global survey, published on Tuesday. Bulgaria was assigned a score of 42 points - a one point decline compared to the survey's previous edition, where 0 equals the highest level of perceived corruption and 100 indicates the lowest one, Transparency International said. Many citizens in Bulgaria distrust political institutions and do not feel well represented. The country also lacks independent and transparent media, as the ownership of many media outlets remains unclear. "In addition, many outlets are financially dependent on state advertising, which may colour their reporting and affect any criticism they may otherwise provide to government authorities," Transparency International said in its survey.