Bulgarian Socialist Party distances itself from BSP caretaker cabinet members
The Bulgarian Socialist Party’s (BSP) national council has distanced itself from its three members appointed by President Roumen Radev to the caretaker government, BSP leader Kornelia Ninova told reporters on August 5.
Ninova was speaking after a national council meeting, held three days after the caretaker government came into office.
The caretaker government includes three BSP members – Krum Zarkov (justice) Vessela Lecheva (sport) and Yavor Gechev (agriculture).
Speaking ahead of the meeting, senior BSP member Kristian Vigenin said that the three had accepted being part of the caretaker government without co-ordinating this with the party, in violation of the BSP’s internal rules.
Ninova said: “We distance ourselves from the members of the national council, who were appointed as ministers in violation of the party’s statute”.
“We do not bear any political responsibility for their actions, as well as for the entire government,” she said.
“Those who are appointed as ministers, deputy ministers and district governors and deputy district governors participate in this government in their personal capacity, not with a mandate from the BSP and not as party representatives,” Ninova said.
Ninova said that the party considered what she called the interference of the presidential institution in the internal affairs of political parties unacceptable, in particular unacceptable in the case of the BSP.
The main task of the caretaker government is to ensure optimal conditions for the holding of the early parliamentary elections and requires it to refrain from any actions and statements that can be interpreted as interference in favour or to the detriment of parties and candidates participating in the elections, she said.
Radev did not consult the BSP before the appointments, and at least one, Zarkov, is well-known to be a political foe of Ninova.
Ninova said that there was no intention to expel the three from the BSP.
She said that the official position regarding the three had been adopted with 104 votes in favour, five against and three abstentions.
(Photo of Ninova: BSP)
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