site.bta Reformist Bloc Says What Matters Is Programme of Future Government, Not PM's Personality

Reformist Bloc Says What Matters Is Programme of Future Government, Not PM's Personality

Sofia, October 8 (BTA) - The leaders of the parties in the
Right-wing Reformist Bloc (RB) met Wednesday to discuss a joint
position in the process of formation of a new government.
Emerging from the meeting, Bozhidar Loukarski of the Union of
Democratic Forces (UDF) said that what matters is the programme
the future government will have, not the personality of the
Prime Minister. He also said that the RB rallied round the
understanding that Bulgaria needs to have a government now and
that going into "an elections spiral" will be fatal for this
country.

Democrats for Strong Bulgaria leader Radan Kanev did not attend
the meeting.

Kanev is strongly opposed to supporting a GERB government with
Boyko Borissov as Prime Minister but the RB seem divided on this
matter and other member parties have indicated willingness to
back a new Borissov government.

Kanev wrote in Facebook that he would not attend the Wednesday
talks because some of the parties in the Bloc were going there
before discussing their positions which means that their leaders
would be taking only their personal positions and ambitions to
the meeting. He says though that he remains an optimist that
with the help of the leaderships of the member parties and the
RB Citizen's Board the Bloc will be able to hammer out a
concerted position consistent with its election platform.

Loukarski commented that GERB, being the winner in the October 5
general elections, has the right to propose the government and
Prime Minister it wants. "What matters more is the priorities
that the future government will have and not who the Prime
Minister is," he said.

The UDF leader added that the meeting did not discuss "the pros
and cons of one specific government, with or without Boyko
Borissov and Tsvetan Tsvetanov". "We face to face reality and
see that there are lots of parties in Parliament and the
situation is volatile," he added.

The RB leaders made a firm decision Wednesday not to step back
from their top priorities - reform in the judicial system and
the state administration, and changes in the system of higher
education - if GERB invites them to talks on the formation of a
government.

Loukarski said that he cannot understand what is "a minority
government with shared responsibility" which is one of the ideas
of the GERB leader. "We have not discussed that either."

The RB has not yet formed its negotiating team and will do that
when the Central Election Commission is ready with the final
results from the October 5 elections and it is clear exactly who
goes in the RB parliamentary group.

Loukarski dismissed media speculations for a rift in the RB.