Siderov: Borissov is a liar, terrified that he could find himself in jail
Ataka leader Volen Siderov says that his party’s judgment on Plamen Oresharski, the socialist nominee to be prime minister in its planned “programme government”, will depend on Oresharski’s achievements in office.
Siderov, one of four leaders of political parties that have won seats in the 42nd National Assembly and who held talks on May 17 with President Rossen Plevneliev on the date of Parliament’s first sitting, also rationalised how his ultra-nationalist party will live with being bedfellows with its bête-noire, the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF), in supporting the “programme government”.
Ataka and the MRF, the party led and supported in the main by Bulgarians of ethnic Turkish descent, exist in constant mutual enmity.
“We are not going to work with the MRF,” Siderov told journalists, in a mirror-image message of what the MRF has had to say about his party.
GERB leader Boiko Borissov has characterised the political deal among the Bulgarian Socialist Party, MRF and Ataka as even worse for Bulgaria than the 2005/09 tripartite coalition. At least that coalition had two liberal parties in it, Borissov said on May 17.
Borissov said that the scenario that had been worked out would see the BSP and MRF voting for the socialists’ “programme government” under Oresharski, with some Ataka MPs “defecting” from Siderov’s ranks to also vote for it.
Siderov dismissed this as a lie by Borissov. He added that already, GERB had contacted two of his future MPs, promising them “the power, money and jobs that GERB alone could offer” if they switched allegiance. Siderov declined to disclose the names of the two future Ataka MPs.
Siderov said that Borissov was lying when he said that GERB was holding talks with other parties about a future government.
Borissov told journalists that Borissov was terrified because a government was to come to power than could put the GERB leader into a suit with arrows on it. This was because of things that would come out about the Borissov administration, according to the Ataka leader.
The Ataka leader spelt out the issues most crucial to the party, that it wanted to see implemented. These were steps to bring down the price of electricity, with the regular July 1 adjustment coming, action against the licences of electricity distribution companies CEZ, EVN and Energo Pro, increased pensions and health care reform.
The immediate priorities were revising the Energy Act and raising the lowest pensions.
Siderov said that he was giving up none of his policies, but would be able to implement them only if it was he becoming prime minister. This included going ahead with the Belene nuclear power station project, for which he said he knew where to find funding.
He said that once it was clear what was planned, his party would approve or disapprove of specific actions.
The two parties that won the most votes should make it clear how the incomes of Bulgarians could be increased. “This is not what I want, it is what the Bulgarian people want, and if you like, our European Union membership, because it is shameful and degrading that a Bulgarian is paid 10 times less than his counterpart in a European country,” Siderov said.
Like the BSP and MRF, Siderov spoke in favour of May 21 as the date for the first sitting of Parliament, echoing those parties’ leaders in saying that it was a good choice because it was a “bright” Christian holiday, the day of Saints Konstantin and Elena.
Responding to speculation by the media that Ataka was to be awarded the post of Speaker of the 42nd National Assembly, with the post said to be going to Ataka MP Yavor Notev, Siderov said that for his party, it was programmes and not posts that mattered, but Notev would make a far better Speaker than the 41st Parliament’s presiding officer, GERB’s Tsetska Tsacheva.
Siderov repeatedly evaded answering questions whether he would support a secret ballot in Parliament in the vote on the proposed cabinet.
(Photo: Clive Leviev-Sawyer)
