site.btaBoyko Borissov: As Our Adversaries Wanted - MRF – New Beginning Dependence Scheme Is Becoming a Fact

GERB leader Boyko Borissov Wednesday commented the decision of the Parliamentary Group of Democracy, Rights and Freedoms (DRF) to withdraw support for the ruling majority, and said his party's adversaries hope to see the government becoming dependent on the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) – New Beginning, has materialized. GERB are in the worst possible situation: "fighting for the State, yet bearing the liabilities of the support that is about to become a fact," he said.

Regarding DRF, Borissov added that GERB have kept their promise to them and provided them with the positions of chairpersons of parliamentary committees.

He also said: “If a person from GERB had been caught with BGN 100,000 in marked bills, we would have long forgotten they were with GERB. In the case of DRF, we continued doing everything that they asked for.”

Asked about the immunity of MPs from DRF, Borissov added that “what we have always stated, and we insist on this, but they have gone too far with their accusations against us, we protected their immunity, and we will continue doing it, because we promised, but this is a two-way process.” He explained that this would be done until “they cross boundaries with their behaviour, talk and everything else.”

The prosecution service has moved for stripping of immunity MPs Dzheyhan Ibryamov and Mario Rangelov from DRF. Ibryamov is accused of asking for and accepting a gift in October 2019 in Sofia to exert influence on a decision by an official of the Ministry of Health in connection with his office. In the case of Mario Rangelov, investigations revealed that he led a group offering money in exchange for votes during the elections for the 51st National Assembly.

On April 8, acting Prosecutor General Borislav Sarafov sent a letter to National Assembly Chair Nataliya Kiselova to remind the legislature about the requests to strip of immunity six MPs.

GERB’s leader thanked the CC-DB for not participating in the vote. “This is a great help, and I thank them,” he said.

"Not sanctioned for corruption"

Asked if it would be a liability for GERB if the government is supported by Peevski, who has been sanctioned for corruption by the United States and the United Kingdom, Borissov said that Delyan Peevski "has not been sanctioned for corruption and the time will come for him and for [former GERB Finance Minister Vladislav] Goranov, the truth will come out, just as it did for Hungary [the US Treasury announced Biden-era sanctions on high-ranking Hungarian minister for alleged corruption will be lifted] yesterday.” Borissov added that if something has been done based on slander, it should be dropped, saying that he can vouch for Vladislav Goranov.

He also said that checks on the information related to Bulgarians sanctioned for corruption under the Magnitsky Act by the US are about to be released, because “I know that the security services there have no such information [about involvement in corruption].”

"When we were in the “assemblage” [a term used with a negative connotation to describe the previous parliamentary majority between GERB-UDF, Continue the Change-Democratic Bulgaria and the Movement for Rights and Freedoms], they [CC-DB] talked in front of us about how they had done it. They came and told Peevski that the sanctions for his wife, his children and his mother could be lifted," Borissov also said.

In 2021 Delyan Peevski (leader of MRF – New Beginning) was designated by the US under the Global Magnitsky Act as an oligarch who "has regularly engaged in corruption, using influence peddling and bribes to protect himself from public scrutiny and exert control over key institutions and sectors in Bulgarian society." The MP is challenging the designation in a US court. His lawyers argue that there is no evidence of any wrongdoing by their client.

In 2023, the UK sanctioned Peevski for his involvement "in attempts to exert control over key institutions and sectors in Bulgarian society through bribery and use of his media empire".