Bulgaria will have to pay a BGN 60,000 fine in case the country decided to withdraw from the "Eurovision 2009" song contest, the Director of the "Music and Entertainment" Division of the Bulgarian National Television (BNT), Lyuben Kunchev, told the Darik radio.

The strong criticism against the song "Illusion" and its author and performer Krasimir Avramov is continuing for the fourth consecutive day after the song was selected to represent Bulgaria at the "Eurovision 2009" finals in Moscow in May. Prominent Bulgarian musicians and members of the social network Facebook protested Tuesday in front of the BNT building in Sofia, demanding annulment of the vote.

Kunchev, who spoke amidst the escalating scandal Wednesday night, told the Darik radio that one possible solution was Bulgaria's withdrawal from this year's edition of the contest, adding that the country will be subjected to a financial sanction in the amount of 10% of the fee it needed to pay to enter the contest.

In order to avoid the fine, a team of specialists has already began to work with Avramov to help him improve his singing. Bulgarian singer Petya Buyklieva, one of the few that has voiced support for Avramov, is included in the team. If Avramov goes to the Moscow finals, she will perform as his back vocal.

The BNT Music Director pointed out that the decision was yet to be made and was going to be reached by March 10. Around this time Kunchev will have to travel to Moscow to sign the participation contract.

Avramov's song won Saturday with 55,52% of the spectators' vote.

As soon as the results were announced, the song and its author became subject to fierce criticism on the part of some of the country's top musicians. Renowned composer Nayden Andreev appealed to Avramov to immediately withdraw his bid, while famous performers, Yordanka Hristova and Kiril Marichkov, directly accused Avramov of singing out of tune.

The scandal is the most serious one since Bulgaria began participating in the "Eurovision" contest. In addition to comments about the poor quality of the song and the performance, there are accusations that the contest was an inside job and results were forged.

There is an online petition in Facebook demanding that the vote's results are annulled. The petition is titled: "Krasimir Avramov's Song for Eurovision Is a Disgrace to Bulgaria." It can be found at:
http://bgpetition.com/sprete_da_ni_lujete/index.html

Avramov vowed to participate in the "Eurovision 2009" finals in Moscow and to represent Bulgaria, explaining the scandal as triggered by his colleagues' jealousy.

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