site.btaBoyko Borissov: GERB Does Not Support Trifonov's Proposed Cabinet

Sofia, July 14 (BTA) - GERB leader and former prime minister
Boyko Borissov told a briefing on Wednesday that his party does
not support the cabinet which was proposed by Slavi Trifonov,
leader of the There Is Such a People (TISP) party, a few hours
after Sunday's snap elections. Borissov also said that if the
President handed GERB a mandate to form a government, it would
be returned immediately.

In an emotional speech, Borissov lashed at party leaders,
particularly those of Rise Up! Thugs Out! (RUTO), Democratic
Bulgaria and the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP), saying that
they would "bring the nation to ruin". "Who will want to invest
in a country stuck in election mode?" Borissov asked. A
political interpretation of the election results shows that the
people did not hand power to anyone but urged the parties to get
 together and make the State work, he said.

The latest results released by the Central Election Commission
give TISP a negligible lead over GERB against the backdrop of a
voter turnout of around 40 per cent. TISP won 24.08 per cent of
the votes, followed by the GERB-UDF coalition with 23.51 per
cent, BSP for Bulgaria with 13.39 per cent, the Democratic
Bulgaria Alliance with 12.64 per cent, the Movement for Rights
and Freedoms with 10.71 per cent, and RUTO with 5.01 per cent.

GERB will not back Slavi Trifonov by any means, said Borissov.
Also, GERB's MPs in the new parliament will not support RUTO
leader Maya Manolova's idea to have the caretaker government as
a regular one. The MPs will enter the plenary on the day when
the cabinet is put to the vote and will vote against, GERB's
leader said.

He added that if the President handed him a mandate to form a
cabinet, he would return it promptly.

Assuming that Trifonov does not actually intend to form a
government, Borissov warned that there would be no winners if
new snap elections were held and that the country would be in
free fall.

Analysing the political situation, Borissov said that after the
April 4 parliamentary elections, Democratic Bulgaria, the BSP
and RUTO pledged support for Trifonov's cabinet, but now made a
U-turn. He warned that Bulgaria was one of two EU Member States
which have not submitted yet a Recovery and Resilience Plan to
the European Commission and that another round of early
elections would be devastating to the country, regardless of how
 GERB fared in them.

"Get together, without a parliament there will not be a budget
and a Recovery Plan, the fourth COVID-19 wave is coming. Form a
government!", Borissov urged. Referring to Trifonov's career as
an entertainer, Borissov stressed that unlike making a show,
running the country involves hard work, responsibility and
expertise. 

Asked if he would run for President, Borissov said that he was
not tempted and that the party has a candidate who is "bright,
tall, good-looking, with a fine head of hair, bespectacled, and
fluent in languages". 
RY/DD