Continue the Change - Democratic Bulgaria (CC-DB) co-chair Kiril Petkov, who attended the consultations with President Rumen Radev and the parliamentary parties in the 49th National Assembly here on Friday, strongly objected to having outgoing Interior Minister Kalin Stoyanov on the list of caretaker ministers. Petkov called Stoyanov's presence in the list proposed by Prime Minister-designate Dimitar Glavchev "a provocation and insult" as well as an attempt to cover up the affiliations of the caretaker cabinet.
Petkov was adamant that a caretaker cabinet must achieve impartial elections, with vote buying being limited to a minimum.
After Petkov's statement, the CC-DB representatives walked out of the consultations.
Petkov pointed out that it was GERB that proposed Stoyanov to be a minister in the outgoing cabinet. Petkov added: "We said that he is not only a bright political figure who is associated with GERB, but worse, he is a figure incapable of having his own opinion. Vote buying has been proven in local elections." Petkov labelled proposing Stoyanov for the caretaker cabinet as "absolute political insolence".
Another CC-DB co-chair, Atanas Atanasov, concurred with Petkov, saying that CC-DB does not trust Stoyanov. Atanasov said: "We will work hard to uncover all of this man's affiliations." Atanasov suggested that Stoyanov would serve to shield vote buyers for GERB and the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) from repercussions.
Atanasov also criticized Maria Pavlova as a proposal for caretaker justice minister. Pavlova currently serves as a deputy to acting Prosecutor General Borislav Sarafov, who Atanasov said is strongly backed by GERB and the MRF.
Petkov also commented on the inclusion in the caretaker government of the outgoing Minister of Transport and Communications, Georgi Gvozdeikov, who is a member of CC-DB. Petkov said: "I had a long conversation with him yesterday [Thursday] and informed him that if he decides to stay in this caretaker cabinet, since caretaker cabinets should be not politically balanced, but politically neutral, this decision would be entirely his to make. If he decides to do so, he will be expelled from Continue the Change."
/RY/
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