site.btaUPDATED CC-DB Ask President to Delay Handing of Second Government Mandate to Seek Broad Support for Counter-Corruption Legislative Package

Continue the Change - Democratic Bulgaria Monday asked President Rumen Radev to delay the handing of the second mandate to allow them time to seek broad public support for a proposed declaration containing a package of legal changes to enhance the fight against corruption. CC-DB met with the President at their request to discuss the current political situation. 

They expect to be offered the second exploratory mandate for the formation of a government.

The declaration will be sent to every MP in parliament as early as Tuesday. "In the last three years, we were the only ones who took on the difficult task of making a regular government and in the last elections we suffered political damage from that. The crux of the crisis today is that the same parties that came together and brought down the government now cannot come together to make a government of their own," Denkov said.

In his words, crises require unconventional solutions and that is why they are proposing an unconventional solution to help get out of the current political crisis.

According to Denkov, the crisis was caused by the failed fight against corruption. "The place of corrupt politicians is not in the National Assembly - their place is elsewhere. That is why we want to propose a package of legislative solutions to take this missing step to help clean up the political system of corrupt individuals," Denkov added. 

The President told Denkov that the CC-DB ideas call for a majority in Parliament and some even a qualified majority of two-thirds.

Denkov said, "We first want to see if there is broad support for what we have to offer. Our plan is to send out our proposal to all MPs tomorrow."

What is in CC-DB's proposal

Bozhidar Bozhanov MP (CC-DB) told the press after the meeting with the President that they propose "a plan to try to resolve the political crisis by removing the systemic factors that caused it".

"We believe that these systemic factors include the unreformed prosecution service, security services and law-enforcing bodies in general," he said. 

He added that these unreformed structures "undermine the confidence of voters that any result - a government or another - can be achieved and that it would work in their interest".

Bozhanov explained that in order to check whether this Parliament "can go in this direction", CC-DB will put forward a declaration of support for seven key laws or legislative solution, including the Judicial Power Act, election of the anti-corruption commission, the whistle-blowers protection law, the Code of Criminal Procedure, the Individual Bankruptcy Bill, the election of a new ombudsman and starting a reform in the security services by introducing an integrity test. 

"If the declaration is backed by enough MPs, then CC-DB can go to the President and tell him that there is majority in this Parliament which can form a government when these laws are passed," said Bozhanov. He added that it is essential to check whether there is really a majority supporting "these things". "We have learnt our lesson and we know that everybody would eagerly support a declaration for reforming the prosecution service, the special services, etc.," he said adding that the reform would take time, maybe three months.

"If the declaration is not backed, we will request the mandate and return it promptly," said also Bozhanov.

Asked who would be their nominee for Prime Minister if the declaration gets the desired broad support, he said that before things come to nominating a Prime Minister, all these bills will have to be passed, which is why they are not ready with a name yet.

Asked if the President is willing to wait three months, he said that it is a decision for the President to make.

CC-DB co-leader Kiril Petkov said that "one declaration won't change anything". "We want real reforms, decisions that are voted [by the legislature] before we talk of a government," he added.