site.btaABV Party Warns It May Withdraw Support from Government If Bad Decisions Reach Critical Proportions

ABV Party Warns It May Withdraw Support from Government If Bad Decisions Reach Critical Proportions


Sofia, December 4 (BTA) - ABV Chairman Georgi Purvanov warned on
Thursday that the party may withdraw its support from the
government if its bad decisions and deviations from its
governance declaration reach critical proportions.

"We will not leap at every opportunity. We will leap up to offer
criticism, but this does not mean that we will pull out our
cards and abandon the cabinet," said Purvanov, whose party
controls one of eight groups in Parliament.

The former President of Bulgaria said that the country's recent
governments deserve criticism for the cancellation of the South
Stream gas pipeline project, and this applies not only to the
now-ruling GERB party, which was also in power between 2009 and
2013, but also to the other governments, be they regular or
caretaker ones.

"The current GERB government is least responsible for the
negative developments concerning South Stream, but the previous
GERB government is highly responsible. When we criticize them,
we do so because we want urgent action to identify the very few
remaining viable solutions and actions, so Bulgaria can regain
its status as an active energy policy factor," Purvanov went on
to say.

He said President Rosen Plevneliev should know better than to
get in the way of the government and the factors that can find a
positive solution to the South Stream case. "The possibility of
having the pipeline built via Bulgaria is small, but we must
keep up the effort," Purvanov said.

He said Turkey is the new regional energy monopolist, not only
regarding natural gas supplies, but also because Turkey has
confirmed its intention to build four nuclear reactors with the
help of Russia. Bulgaria is therefore faced with the prospect of
buying both natural gas and electricity from Turkey, Purvanov
said.

The ABV leader blamed the situation on six successive Bulgarian
governments, including the three-party coalition government of
2005-2009 and its Prime Minister Sergei Stanishev, who, in the
latter part of their tenure, failed to make major energy
projects irreversible. "But we should not become obsessed with
the question of responsibility. More than ever before, we need a
consolidated Bulgarian stance, so we can get back into the
game" Purvanov said.

He expressed satisfaction with the first steps of the new
government, particularly the achievements in the field of social
affairs under ABV's Ivailo Kalfin, who is Deputy Prime Minister
and Minister of Labour and Social Policy. Purvanov noted
Kalfin's role in getting the incumbents to give Christmas
bonuses to the lowest-income pensioners.

Purvanov said he expected more from Wednesday's sitting of
Parliament, when the lawmakers heard out Prime Minister Boyko
Borissov. "He asked for a mandate, Parliament got totally
confused, and the majority - that is, GERB and the Reformist
Bloc - showed they would apply double standards," Purvanov said,
adding that ABV is strongly opposed to such "games and plots."

He disapproved of the Patriotic Front's objections that a man
with a Muslim name should not become a deputy minister. He was
referring to the Patriotic Front's position concerning the
appointment of Orhan Ismailov as Deputy Minister of Defence. "We
are creating a real threat to ethnic relations," Purvanov
warned.