site.btaMedia Review: October 23

HEADLINES 

Duma has given front-page prominence to a survey conducted by Sova Harris between October 11 and 17. The daily says that BSP-United Left has increased its support to 9.6%, positioning it as the fourth-largest political force following the October 27 snap parliamentary elections. According to the poll, 42.2% of respondents said they plan to vote, while 26.4% would not, suggesting a turnout of around 2.3 million voters. Only 14.1% of respondents believe the elections will result in a stable government, while 58.5% think otherwise.

In its lead story, Trud writes that the revenue collected from driving offence fines and penalties into the road safety fund is being spent on police cars and other traffic equipment rather than on improving road safety and protecting citizens. Over the past 14 years, BGN 591 million has been collected, but only BGN 122 million has been spent, the daily adds.

Also on its front page, Trud quotes GERB leader Boyko Borissov, who, during a campaign event in Varna, stated that if a stable GERB-UDF government is formed after the October 27 elections, he intends to renegotiate the terms of the Recovery and Resilience Plan. Borrisov says that goal is to ensure that Bulgaria does not lose at least 50-60% of the allocated funds. 24 Chasa also covers this story.

Telegraph’s top story says that a tonne of bonito has recently been landed in a day in the Black Sea city of Nessebar. The daily quotes Black Sea Advisory Council Chair Yordan Gospodinov as saying that schools of bonito have swarmed in from the Bosphorus, devouring everything in their path and driving other fish out to sea. He said that if seawater temperatures fall to 14C from the current 19C, the bonito may move on to Ukraine, Georgia, or Turkiye. Telegraph adds that fishermen in Varna have been making good catch of mostly garfish, noting that now they are also reeling in bluefish, shi drum, leaping mullet, and  flathead grey mullet.

24 Chasa carries an article saying that Bulgaria’s Defence Ministry has, for the first time, acknowledged the existence of sexual harassment of women in the military. The daily cites statistics compiled by the Ministry for its 2023 report on gender equality, revealing that nine women who serve in the military or whose partner does reported incidents of sexual harassment last year. Additionally, seven women reported experiencing sexual mental abuse, while 22 reported sexual physical abuse, including rape or attempted rape.

POLITICS

Telegraph features a story saying that experts agree that more snap elections are to come after the vote on Sunday. Sociologist Kancho Stoychev is quoted as saying on Nova News that no consensus is expected to be reached on the top jobs in the judiciary. Political analyst Tsvetanka Andreeva highlights the inability of political entities to form a government following a string of elections. Political analyst Toncho Kraevsky says that if voter turnout is indeed as low as expected, a political entity would need 70,000 votes to make it into the National Assembly, making it possible for up to ten parties to enter the new Parliament. According to mathematician Mihail Konstantinov’s estimates, some 1.8 million people will cast their votes in the upcoming elections.

The daily features the Sova Harris poll, according to which GERB-UDF will come first, backed by 25% of respondents. Continue the Change – Democratic Bulgaria and Vazrazhdane will contest the second place, with an expected margin of 0.3%. BSP-United Left is expected to come in fourth, followed by the Alliance for Rights and Freedoms (ARF) with 8.5% and the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) – New Beginning with 6.3%, There Is Such a People (TISP) with 6.6%, and Velichie with 4.1%.

24 Chasa carries a Market Links poll, which places BSP-United Left after ARF and MRF with 7% of votes. TISP is expected to be in last place with 4.6%.

The daily also has an interview with election expert Stoil Tzitzelkov, who comments on the reasons for the decrease in MP candidates this time compared to previous elections and for the growing distrust in the electoral process.

Speaking on Nova TV’s morning programme, Vazrazhdane leader Kostadin Kostadinov said that people must go to the polls if they want the country to continue to exist. He stressed that Bulgaria needs to rethink its current political direction, which he believes "is leading us downhill". The Vazrazhdane leader said that if they receive a government-forming mandate after the elections, they will invite everyone for talks except for Delyan Peevski's MRF - New Beginning. Given the catastrophically low turnout at the recent local by-elections, he expects only about 20% turnout on Sunday. "This raises the question of who the elected MPs will actually represent," he said, adding that people no longer believe that there will be a change and the elections will be fair.

HOME AFFAIRS

The Bulgarian National Radio (BNR) has an interview with former deputy interior minister Philip Gounev, who comments on the ongoing police operations against vote buying. He spoke of a need for a reform that would guarantee the police's independence. In his words, "no police chief would dare to investigate a politician without either being personally instructed to do so or receiving permission from the minister, who is a political figure". "Political officeholders must allow investigations into politicians involved in vote trading, as they are ultimately the buyers. However, this is not happening. It has not happened in the past because these politicians are aligned with their political parties and supporters who helped put them up there, and the police are aware of this," Gounev added.

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In an interview with Nova TV, Ilia Kuzmanov, Chair of the Trade Union Federation of Employees in the Interior Ministry, spoke of the protest readiness of the Ministry’s personnel, which has been fueled by concerns that the promised salary increase for the sector may not be delivered. Under a new formula, the lowest salary in the Interior Ministry will be around BGN 2,000. Those who have degrees will earn 20% above the national average wage, which ranges from BGN 2,300 to BGN 2,400. In contrast, the current lowest salary for the Ministry’s employees is BGN 1,466, Kuzmanov noted. The topic is covered by Mediapool.bg.

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24 Chasa has an extensive interview with former military pilot Nikolay Kalev, who comments on the L-39 ZA aircraft crash that claimed the lives of two pilots, Petko Dimitrov and Ventsislav Dunkin, at the Graf Ignatievo Air Base (South Bulgaria) on September 13. Kalev believes that the accident was caused by a failure on the pilots’ part to navigate the aircraft properly. He argues that Dimitrov and Dunkin were not fully trained at the time of the flight assignment, failed to follow safety protocols, and allowed the flight to proceed despite serious safety risks.

ECONOMY

In a two-page interview with Trud, Lyubomir Datsov, member of the Fiscal Council, says that there is not a single change made to the budget policy in the last three years that does not need revision. Datsov comments on the major budget deficit expected in 2025, the link between the public administration's pay rise and the increase in the average wage, the proposed introduction of progressive taxation, and Bulgaria’s chance to enter the euro area as of July 1, 2025. The financial expert says that the decrease in inflation this country saw in September, month-on-month, does not imply that Bulgaria will be able to join the currency union since inflation rates have fallen across most of the euro area.

A story the daily has on its front page says that over the past three years, most people and companies that held money in the bank have effectively lost nearly a third of their savings. This is due to a combination of low interest rates on deposits and high inflation. Citing the National Statistical Institute, Trud writes that the inflation index for the period 2021-2023 was 31.9%.

24 Chasa says that the International Monetary Fund has lowered its economic growth forecast for Bulgaria in 2024 but has projected inflation to fall to 2.8% from 3.4% in its April report.

Telegraph, Trud and 24 Chasa report a decline in new vehicle sales in Bulgaria and across the European Union for a second consecutive month. Citing figures from the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association, Telegraph notes that new car registrations in Bulgaria in September totaled 2,522, a 15% drop compared to the same month last year. Trud highlights that electric vehicle sales have been falling since January.

EDUCATION, SCIENCE

Telegraph carries an interview with school psychologist Andreana Andreeva, who speaks of the impact advances in technology have on children, the mechanism for identifying children with special educational needs, aggression in the classroom, parental involvement, and the major stressors for teachers.

On its front page, Trud quotes caretaker Innovation and Growth Minister Rosen Karadimov as saying that his Ministry is leading a working group that aims to develop a national space strategy and aspires to establish a National Space Agency. Karadimov spoke at a meeting with US Ambassador in Sofia Kenneth Merten and NASA Administrator Bill Nelson.

CULTURE

Archeologist Nikolay Ovcharov tells Telegraph that the grave of a vampire has been uncovered during excavations at Perperikon, the ancient Thracian city in the Eastern Rhodope Mountains. This is the second grave of a vampire discovered in the ancient city, following the one in 2013. Ovcharov was also interviewed on the Bulgarian National Television (BNT) morning programme.

24 Chasa and Telegraph have stories about director Nikolay Volev, who passed away on October 15 at the age of 78 and was laid to rest on Tuesday.

HEALTH

Speaking on the BNT morning programme, Stefan Bakalov, head of the National Customs Agency’s Combating Drug Trafficking Department, said that the age at which children in Bulgaria begin experimenting with drugs has been dropping drastically. He added that it has fallen to 12 or 13 years. Data from the National Focal Point on Drugs and Drug Addiction show that there are even cases of 10-year-olds using drugs.

In an interview with bTV, National Centre of Infectious and Parasitic Diseases Director Iva Hristova commented on the spread of vibrio vulnificus, often referred to as "flesh-eating bacteria". The issue gained public attention following a recent case involving a 61-year-old woman who became infected and had to undergo ten surgeries. Hristova said that the infection is rare and not limited to Bulgaria, adding that three more cases have been reported here this year. She added that no further cases are expected as temperatures drop, since the bacteria thrives in warm saltwater.