site.btaOf Six Potential Caretaker PM Appointees, One Ready to Accept, Four Refuse, One Off the Record

After President Rumen Radev's in-person and phone talks here on Wednesday with the six senior office holders who, under the latest amendments to the Constitution, are eligible for selection as caretaker prime minister, it transpired that only the incumbent head of government, Dimitar Glavchev, is willing to accept the job offer.

In line with the constitutional procedure for appointing a caretaker cabinet, the President consulted the individuals on the list of potential caretaker PM appointees.

The head of State has among ten officials to pick a caretaker PM: the National Assembly chair, the Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) governor and the three vice governors, the Bulgarian National Audit Office (BNAO) president and the two vice presidents, and the national ombudsman and the deputy ombudsman. The latter two positions, however, are vacant. The BNAO President Dimitar Glavchev holds office as head of the present caretaker cabinet. One BNAO vice president - Goritsa Grancharova-Kozhareva, was already designated to form a cabinet but her proposal was rejected by the President on Monday after she refused to replace Kalin Stoyanov as her interior minister nominee. One BNB Deputy Governor - Andrey Gurov, has been suspended from office pending an appeal of an alleged conflict of interest incompatibility.

"If the President opts for me as a candidate for the next caretaker prime minister, I am prepared for this and there are not any obstacles to that," Dimitar Glavchev said, emerging from his session with Radev.

"The Bulgarian National Bank, and all the more its governor, must not be drawn into the political process," BNB Governor Dimitar Radev said after his meeting with the President. "The fact that the central bank and the banking sector are among the few in the country that operated well and resiliently," he commented further. In his words, politicians should not try to test this resilience.
 
"When it comes to me, specifically, it is absolutely out of the question to even comment the possibility of assuming the functions of prime minister," BNB Deputy Governor Radoslav Milenkov told journalists after his meeting with Radev. Milenkov explained that, in addition to his work as BNB Deputy Governor, he is also a member of the European Central Bank Supervisory Board and the European Banking Authority Board of Supervisors, explaining that this comes "with its commitments and limitations". Milenkov noted that in addition to BNB Banking Supervision Department, he is also in charge its Issue Department. Both he and the President are aware of the situation and what the limitations are, the central bank Deputy Governor said.

BNAO Vice President Toshko Todorov does not think he is prepared for the position of caretaker prime minister as his professional expertise is in the field of audit, he commented to journalists after conferring with President Radev. When approached with the same offer in March, Todorov said: "It is a misconception that the choice can be limited to ten people. There are many people who deserve to hold this position."

Also on Wednesday, the head of State held telephone talks with the Chair of the 50th National Assembly, Raya Nazaryan, and BNB Deputy Governor Petar Chobanov. Nazaryan confirmed her categorical position against taking office as caretaker primce minister. No information is available about Chobanov's reply. Some time ago he told the media that he might be prepared to become PM but did not confirm that at his previous meeting with the President.

Asked by journalists about Chobanov, fellow Deputy Governor Milenkov said he would rather not give evaluations of his colleagues.