site.btaPrime Minister Rules Out Replacement of Voting Machines

Sofia, November 12 (BTA) - Caretaker Prime Minister Stefan Yanev Friday ruled out any possibility for replacement of voting machines or peripheral devices. In an online interactive session with the public on the Council of Ministers' Facebook page, Yanev told voters "there can be no tampering with the devices" that might rig the presidential and parliamentary elections on November 14.Yanev described as speculation the controversy over newlysupplied voting machines, reports on which appeared recently, that the supplier says are being stored in a warehouse in Sofia for spare parts. "This is some speculation intended to dissuade people from voting," said Yanev.
"Bulgarians should rest assured that the caretaker cabinet and the Central Election Commission have spared no effort to ensure fair and secure elections," Yanev said. He added that the law-enforcement authorities were doing their best to curb vote buying, and expressed a hope that the next parliament would be able to elect a government.
***
Interior Minister Boyko Rashkov said there were data showing that certain parties were still trying to buy votes in a bid to take positions of power through crime. "We are witnessing criminal activity involving two parties - GERB and the Movement for Rights and Freedoms," Rashkov told reporters. He assumed that there would be more such cases on the weekend.
In a about a week, 38 persons have been arrested for vote buying, National Police Director Stanimir Stanev told the media. As part of an operation against political rights violations, the police has checked 2,371 sites and has issued more than 2,000 injunctions since November 3. The pre-trial proceedings are 108, similarly to those launched in the run-up to the July 11 parliamentary elections. MY/DD