Bulgarian president slams Borissov for prolonging political crisis

Sofia: Bulgarian President Rumen Radev has slammed the GERB party of long-serving former prime minister Boyko Borissov for suspending negotiations to form a permanent government in a country that has held seven general elections in the past four years.

On Sunday, Borissov’s GERB (EPP), the largest party in the Bulgarian Parliament, announced that it was ending coalition talks with Democratic Bulgaria (EPP), the Bulgarian Socialist Party (PES), and ITN (ECR) because of disagreements over the prime minister’s position.

Borissov insists that former parliamentary speaker Rosen Zhelyazkov, a close associate of his for 20 years, be elected prime minister. Democratic Bulgaria, however, insists on a prime minister who is not a member of any political party because of the mistrust that has built up between the main political players in what is now the fourth year of a severe political crisis.

“I call on the political parties to stop playing with the fate of the people and the future of the country. I have given enough time for them to fulfil their responsibility, but to easily delete everything and throw the country into another early parliamentary election with so many problems pending is a total demonstration of irresponsibility,” Radev said on Monday.

The president has the power to dictate the terms under which the political mandate to form a government is given.

“I will give a little more time – a few days, hoping the negotiators realise that their responsibility is not only to their own party and voters but to the whole nation,” Radev added.

The lack of a clear political majority has led to a real risk that Bulgaria will lose 80% of the Recovery and Sustainability Plan budget. The fragmented parliament has failed to pass the necessary anti-corruption and climate change legislation to allow the European Commission to release the funds.

“Bulgaria will lose €9 billion on the National Recovery and Sustainability Plan and other projects. The caretaker cabinet cannot push through the necessary reforms under the recovery plan. The government has a passive attitude towards it as well,” said Atanas Pekanov, the former deputy prime minister for EU funds.