site.btaMembers of New 45th National Assembly Sworn in as MPs

April 15 (BTA) - The newly elected 45h National Assembly
held its opening sitting on Thursday morning. It took place in
Parliament's old building and was broadcast live on National TV
and National Radio.

A group of protestors had gathered outside prior to the start of
 its first meeting, demanding the appointment of a caretaker
government.
 
As per the constitutional procedure, the new Parliament's first
session was convened by order of President Rumen Radev and
opened by the oldest attending Member of Parliament, Mika
Zaykova of the There Is Such a People Party (TISP), one of three
 newcomer formations in the legislature. She said in her address
 that the Bulgarian people have said the truth many times, "be
it during protests, referendums or elections, but on April 4,
they sent us to this hall with the single task of [bringing]
change that will pull Bulgaria from the bottom of all EU
rankings. We have one goal: a prosperous Bulgaria and a worthy
place in the European family," Zaykova said.

The MPs voted by raising their hand since the electronic voting
system has been moved to Parliament's new building.

The MPs were sworn in, vowing to observe the Constitution and
this country's laws, and always act in the interest of the
people.

Five MPs in COVID quarantine - TISP leader Slavi Trifonov among
them - were allowed to take the oath online and participate in
Parliament's future sessions remotely.  

The National Anthem was played in plenary hall, as well as the
Anthem of Europe. President Radev and Vice President Iliana
Iotova, National Ombudsman Diana Kovacheva, former President
Rosen Plevneliev (2012-2017), former parliament chairs, members
of religious denominations and the diplomatic corps attended the
 opening session. BTA Director General Kiril Valchev was also
there. 

President: Parliament must take urgent steps to reform the
election legislation

In his address, President Radev said that the 45th National
Assembly is an expression of the moths-long protests and common
will for change. "Regardless of what course the consultations on
 the formation of a government take, Parliament must take urgent
 actions to reform election legislation," said Radev.

The President said that he will hold consultations with the
parliamentary groups on Monday about the formation of a
government.

Then, the political groups presented their intentions in
declarations.

GERB ready to reach out to opponents

Speaking on behalf of her GERB-UDF Parliamentary Group,
Desislava Atanasova, who was also nominated as Floor Leader,
said that her group is ready to extend a hand towards their
political opponents. She confirmed that GERB will propose a new
Cabinet, whose members will be able to immediately start
tackling the challenges from day one and work at the same high
speed at which the outgoing Cabinet was working. According to
her, important decisions have to be made, such as whether the
measures in support of businesses will continue, whether new
restrictions will need to be introduced, whether the agreed
funding under the EU Recovery Plan will be protected and whether
 this country will continue on its path towards the eurozone. 

Apparently referring to the past of the TISP founders in TV
entertainment, she said "the show must end because unlike the
show, applauses are a rarity on the political stage but there is
 compromise, disappointment and wounds, and courage and resolve
are required".  She further urged TISP to end their silcence and
 announce their plans, and warned that "the timelessness of a
possible caretaker government will be paid by all people through
 worsening economic problems and slower recovery". 

TISP to press ahead with election legislation revisions and
lower party subsidy 

TISP deputy leader Toshko Yordanov said that on Day One of this
Parliament, his party will propose amendments to the Election
Code and move for lowering the party subsidy to 1 lev from 8
leva per vote by revisions to the Political Parties Act.

Yordanov does not expect this Parliament to live its full life
and said its main task is to amend the Election Code.

"There are basic things that people want and that this
Parliament is obliged to do," he said, referring to lifting the
limit on the number of voting sections abroad, allowing voting
by mail for Bulgarian expats, introducing full machine voting
and video surveillance, as well as disbanding the current
Central Election Commission and electing a new one.

Socialists call for full scrutiny of Borissov government,
prioritizing National Recovery and Resilience Plan

BSP for Bulgaria Floor Leader Kornelia Ninova said that a full
scrutiny should be done on the outgoing Government and
Parliament should introduce a moratorium any government
decisions for sale, concessions, appointments and extension of
contract deadlines and managing board tenures. According to her,
 the outgoing Prime Minister and the Finance Minister should
also report on the current financial standing of the State and
submit a budget update.

Ninova said that the National Recovery and Resilience Plan. The
deadline for presenting the plan to Brussels expires on April
30, which calls for the urgent mobilisation of expert,
scientific and political potential, she said.

The Socialists will table a legislative package in support of
SMEs, households and young families.

Ninova said that her parliamentary group will not support a GERB
 government but would support a government of TISP when it comes
 to policies aimed at dismantling "the vicious way this country
has been run".

Democratic Bulgaria seek constitutional changes impacting
judiciary

Hristo Ivanov of Democratic Bulgaria said that his parliamentary
 group's priorities include amending the Constitution in order
to terminate the Prosecutor General's term in office, carrying
through changes in the judiciary, purging the courts of
corruption, dismantling the counter-corruption commission in its
 present form as an instrument for repressions and dismissing
its head Sotir Tsatsarov.

Ivanov said his group is ready to go to talks with TISP, being
the second largest group in Parliament, on the formation of a
government, but such talks need to be about policies.

He agrees that preparing and submitting a National Recovery and
Resilience Plan is a matter of priority for this country.

He said GERB's refusal to sent to the European Commission the
drafted national plan, despite its shortcomings, is a form of
sabotage.

MRF with conditional support for government of three newcomers
to Parliament

Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) leader Mustafa Karadayi
said it would be a grave mistake to add a political crisis to
the plethora of unprecedented crises Bulgaria is currently
facing, such as the pandemic, the social, economic and
institutional crisis.

According to Karadayi, his party would support a government of
the three new political forces in this Parliament with the
following priorities: a plan on how to exit the pandemic crisis,
 drafting and adopting a programme for recovery and resilience,
a worthy membership in the Euro-Atlantic structures.

Rise Up! Thugs Out! wants new prosecutor general and new
regulators in addition to new Parliament and new government

Rise Up! Thugs Out! Floor Leader Maya Manolova said that when
they speak of changing the government, they include in this a
new Prosecutor General and new regulators in addition to the new
 Parliament and government.

In her words, their first step would be to take the thugs out of
 government. "This goes not only for the main thugs, but also
for those who have served them for a long time and benefited
from that. There must be no coalition with them," Manolova said.
 

The second step would be launching "a thorough scrutiny of the
corrupt government" and holding people responsible. She said her
 parliamentary group will be tabling a draft resolution for
establishing a committee that will scrutinize the outgoing
government. "We will show the people all of the powerholders'
dirty secrets and abuses and will make them face justice," she
said.

Another key issue, in her words, is election rules: "We will
change them immediately, so we can be ready for snap elections,"
 Manolova said. RI/MY

 


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