Bulgaria’s July elections: Trifonov says he will not be a candidate
Cable television presenter Slavi Trifonov, whose ITN party is vying for first place in Bulgaria’s July 11 parliamentary elections, said on June 7 that he would not stand as a candidate MP.
Trifonov’s ITN got the second-largest share of seats in the 45th National Assembly, elected in April.
With the option of a government nominated by Boiko Borissov’s GERB party opposed by all other groups, it was left to ITN to propose a government, which it refused to do, ultimately leading to the calling of the July elections.
Trifonov, who was an MP in the 45th National Assembly but whose very few appearances were only by video link, said he would not be a candidate MP “because my place is not there, but to be responsible for the people who are there and what they do. Of course, I can bear this responsibility from another institution, but as to that…when the time comes”.
He said that “responsibility” was alien to Bulgarian political life.
“Being responsible is very important personally, and when you are responsible for other people it is sacredly important. In this line of thinking, imagine what it is like to be a politician. You have to be the most responsible person in the world.
“Well, it’s not like that in Bulgaria, is it? Recent events prove it particularly clearly. I live like that. I speak when I have something to say, I do what I think is moral and right, and I strive to carry out my responsibilities with dignity.”
Trifonov said that the fact that he and his colleagues had created the ITN party did not change this.
“In fact, we have created a platform on which we want to get professionals, responsible people who have the desire and courage to do what needs to be done,” he said.
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