The tourism industry is upset after the nomination of the GERB / UDF coalition, which today proposed Lyuben Dilov as Minister of Tourism.
“Absolute ridicule and carelessness with tourism. It is better that the proposed government will not pass, since they failed to find real experts in the country,” Evgenia Dimova from the Association of Tour Operators and Travel Agents “Union Future for Tourism” told TravelNews.
“I was just dumbfounded! I’m in shock,” the association’s chairwoman Pavlina Ilieva responded when she heard the news. According to her, Dilov is an erudite man and has a broad view of cultural life in Bulgaria, but in tourism he must be an expert in this field.
“We are already being baptized and joking in the industry because they are making fun of us,” said Branimir Milanov, deputy chairman of the Bulgarian Hotel and Restaurant Association (BHRA). According to him, GERB’s proposal shows that they have nothing to do with tourism and this part of the Bulgarian economy. “It is high time for the sector to be led by people who are hot and boiling in it,” Milanov added.
The chairman of the organization Georgi Shterev stressed that GERB has shown for 6 years that they are not excited about tourism despite the ministry created in their time. “For them, the sector is only the beaches that have given concessions.” Shterev also considers Lyuben Dilov an erudite man, but it is inexplicable that he will be Minister of Tourism. “We want a prepared person for our sector so that he can solve the accumulated numerous problems,” he added.
Ventsislav Krastev, chairman of the Tourism Association, explained that he knew Dilov well, “who understood everything” and was a good diver. “The Minister of Tourism must be an administrator and be surrounded by people who understand,” he stressed.
“We have seen worse in the sector. After Nikolinka, nothing can surprise us,” said Dimitar Popov, manager of Penguin Travel. According to him, the post does not have to be held by a person who has worked in the hotel or tour operator business.
“It is also important to have expertise in digitalization and advertising, and to be surrounded by deputy ministers in the industry.
The comment of the Deputy Chairman of the National Board of Tourism Martin Zahariev was short: “Congratulations Lubo, I’m happy for you.”
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