site.btaMedia Review: April 9

POLITICS

Capital.bg has an interview with former interior minister and MP of Continue the Change (CC) Boyko Rashkov, who comments on the ongoing scandal at the Interior Ministry over caretaker Interior Minister Kalin Stoyanov and Secretary General Zhivko Kotsev. According to Rashkov, Stoyanov lacks the necessary qualities to be a political leader of the Interior Ministry, because he is the kind of person who does what he is told and nothing more. Furthermore, he secretly favour the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF), as it has turned out. Rashkov warned the CC of this before Stoyanov’s appointment in the regular cabinet of Nikolay Denkov, but Rashkov’s opinion was ignored because that was the will of GERB leader Boyko Borissov, working in secret with the MRF. According to Rashkov, Kotsev during his many years at the Interior Ministry has demonstrated excellent professional qualities, but is now being attacked because of the unstable position of the Interior Minister and the upcoming early elections. The last days have seen unprecedented pressure being exerted on Kotsev to resign [which he did but later withdrew his resignation after being backed by Denkov]. In Rashkov’s words, the pressure was exerted by an organized group featuring acting Prosecutor General Borislav Sarafov, acting Counter-Corruption Commission head Anton Slavchev, Sofia prosecutor Iliana Kirilova, a colleague of hers, and Minister Stoyanov. “According to my information, all of them exerted psychological pressure and threatened Zhivko Kotsev to resign, because otherwise they would take unpleasant actions against him,” Rashkov tells Capital. He argues that the Executive and the Judiciary are preparing unfair elections in favour of GERB and the MRF.
 
On Bulgarian National Radio, national security expert and former Interior Ministry Secretary General Nikolay Radoulov said that for several years now, the Interior Ministry’s reputation has been able to withstand anything because it stands at 0 and thus has nowhere further to collapse. The Interior Ministry can influence the elections only to some extent, he argued. When the vote buyers are warned, they hide and the election process becomes slightly more presentable.  According to Radoulov, Kotsev is a dependent figure, as recently leaked photos show him next to criminals, so he resigned with the knowledge he cannot possibly remain Secretary General. As there currently is a war for control over the smuggling channels in Bulgaria, those channels put tens of millions of BGN in private hands, and elections always require money, there is no way the issue with Kotsev does not get politicized. The security system in Bulgaria is very sick and has been in need of reforms for years, Radoulov argued. 

On bTV’s morning show, the topic of the scandal at the Interior Ministry was discussed by lawyer Lyudmil Rangelov, representing Customs Agency Director Petya Bankova, who was recently arrested for suspected participation in an organized crime group. In Rangelov’s words, outgoing Prime Minister Nikolay Denkov is mistaken in thinking that Kotsev was pressured to resign; Kotsev’s behaviour shows he was trying to make a deal with the prosecution, because he got scared by the operation against Bankova. He saw his office was being searched and it was clear to him that he was somewhat compromised due to ties with some of the persons targeted in the operation. However, the information on this case was leaked because of political interests to compromise Kotsev, Rangelov believes, recalling that Kotsev is claimed to have been chosen for Interior Ministry Secretary General by Continue the Change. 

On Nova TV’s morning show, the topic was discussed by lawyer Petromir Kanchev, Tihomir Bezlov of the Center for the Study of Democracy, and Boyko Naydenov, former head of the National Investigation Service. According to the experts, it is wrong to politicize the figure of the Interior Ministry Secretary General. Kanchev noted that when elections near, players such as the prosecution service and the State Agency for National Security get activated. A situation is created where everyone appears dirty with the goal to reduce the voter turnout, which is to the benefit of certain political parties. Bezlov said that election efficiency is sought through this scandal; the June 9 elections will not be the first where we witness such shows featuring special surveillance means, photos, interference of security services and media. 

On Bulgarian National Television’s morning show, former interior minister Emanuil Yordanov commented that the “dirty story” with the Interior Ministry Secretary General will further reduce the voter turnout, and everyone who has an interest in that will win. The leaked information about the ongoing case against Customs Agency head Bankova – a protocol from an unnamed witness’ testimony – should be investigated by the prosecution to determine who circulated this protocol in violation of the justice procedures. 

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Segabg.com writes in an analysis that GERB got all of the returns from the assemblage with Continue the Change – Democratic Bulgaria (CC-DB) after successfully “cooking” CC-DB with the help of MRF leader Delyan Peevski. Three years ago, Borissov and GERB looked on the verge of a catastrophe, with forces in society calling for a change gaining growing popularity. Now, however, GERB is once again at the top in Parliament and directs it where is serves the party best together with the MRF; the anti-GERB forces are scattered and hate each other more than they hate GERB. The analysis goes on to list Borissov’s successes that stabilized his shaky position: getting re-legitimized as a politician with whom the other formation can become partners; GERB getting a cabinet with their own prime minister (the newly appointed caretaker Prime Minister is former MP of GERB Dimitar Glavchev); successfully blocking judicial reforms (the Constitution was amended but the changes in the Judicial System Act are yet to start; the procedures are pending for the selection of new Supreme Judicial Council, Supreme Prosecutor’s Council, and Prosecutor General). 

Trud has an interview with Prof Antoaneta Hristova, political psychologist, who argues that CC-DB taking the power was a huge mistake, and so was Borissov’s support for CC-DB. Neither GERB nor CC-DB are interested in a real judicial reform happening, and that is why their assemblage fell apart, she says. The government of Nikolay Denkov lasted nine months because that period was useful to Borissov, but the planned rotation in March [Mariya Gabriel of GERB taking over from Denkov] would not have been. A government led by Gabriel would have been seen as GERB’s, which would not have served Borissov’s interest at a time of upcoming changes in Europe and the United States. CC-DB does not truly want judicial reforms, despite claiming otherwise; all of the reforms they tried to pass were a failure and against the public interest, Hristova tells the daily, giving the revisions to the Constitution as an example. The Constitutional Court delaying its position on the constitutionality of those revisions deals a heavy blow on its own reputation. 

On Bulgarian National Television’s morning show, former caretaker cabinet spokesperson Anton Koutev said that the new caretaker government’s goal is to last its full term in office. Glavchev’s cabinet is the only one which the Constitution tasks with doing nothing. All revisions to the Constitution were made to ensure that the caretaker cabinets do nothing but organize snap elections. That is a wrong political goal and creates trouble for the State, Koutev argued. There is logic in the constitutional amendments: CC-DB, GERB-UDF, and the MRF made it so that the ruling majority determines the caretaker government, meaning that those three formations will control the elections. 

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Telegraf has an interview with Tsetevelina Peneva of the Public Council with the Central Election Commission, who talks about the difficulties in organizing two-in-one elections in June [early general elections and European Parliament elections]. For example, the preferential votes will have to be counted twice. 

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On Bulgarian National Television’s morning show, journalist Lyubcho Neshkov talked about the election campaign in North Macedonia. “In North Macedonia they do not even mention the name of Bulgaria, but speak of an ‘eastern neighbour’,” he said.  Neshkov advised young Bulgarian compatriots and some of the Bulgarian politicians to visit North Macedonia for three days and acquaint themselves with the atmosphere, the spirit, the political messages and the way the media works there. "They will see live that the deep state in [North] Macedonia is Serbia. How the political elite serve foreign interests, work against the interests of their own people and that the executioners are turned into heroes. They will see how a party that fought for justice is now the flagship of serving foreign interests against its independence. From morning till night, hatred is sown against Bulgaria," Neshkov added.

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Duma reports that BSP for Bulgaria deputy floor leader and Bulgarian Rugby Federation President Atanas Zafirov, BSP for Bulgaria Secretary Deyan Dechev, and Socialist MP Ivan Ivanov have held a meeting with Andorra’s Ministers Monica Tuset of Culture, Youth and Sports and Raul Bonet of Territorial Planning. The Bulgarian delegation has been a guest at the first-ever official rugby match between the female teams of Bulgaria and Andorra. The sides have discussed the opportunities for promotion of bilateral sport and cultural exchange as well as the development of the parliamentary ties between Bulgarian and Andorra.

ECONOMY

Trud’s front-page article reads that young Bulgarians have a good chance at a career in Germany and the UK, judging by Сeoworld magazine’s study comparing 127 countries’ conditions for living and professional development. The UK and Germany top the ranking as the countries offering the best conditions for a young person to start their career, followed by Canada, the USA, and Japan. Bulgaria is in 50th place, after countries like Argentina and Costa Rica. When it comes to the living conditions it offers for over-60-year-olds, Bulgaria ranks 69th. 

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Mediapool.bg report of just over 13,100 vacant places in Sofia’s municipal kindergartens and crèches for the main ranking in May. Last year, some 13,000 places were announced, while the applicants were nearly 21,100, and nearly 10,000 children were not admitted according to their wishes despite not all places getting filled. What the shortage will look like this year will become clear after the first ranking on May 10. 

Telegraf writes on its front page that some 6,000 children are left without a place in a municipal crèche. 

HOME AFFAIRS

24 Chasa’s front page reads that the warm weather has encouraged burglars who break into homes through the balcony to become active two months earlier than usual. A bulglar known as The Spider for being able to break into homes as high as the fourth floor by climbing the roof rainwater pipe, is on the loose, the daily warns.