First reactions to Andrey Gyurov being nominated as caretaker PM

President Iliana Iotova has nominated Bulgarian National Bank Deputy Governor Andrey Gyurov as a candidate for caretaker prime minister. Under the constitution, the caretaker prime minister proposes an interim cabinet whose main role is to prepare and oversee fair elections.

'Fair elections can only take place when a caretaker government does not intervene in the political arena, remains neutral and operates strictly within the powers granted to it by the Constitution,' Gyurov said in January after talks with Iotova.

The nomination has prompted strong reactions from parties in parliament.

'The choice of Andrey Gyurov as caretaker prime minister is a good step towards fair elections. Of course, if Boyko Rashkov becomes interior minister, that would truly guarantee fair elections, because you will recall that in 2021, when Mr Rashkov was interior minister, there were the fewest bought and controlled votes,” said We Continue the Change leader Assen Vassilev.

'We expect the nominated caretaker prime minister to present a competent and independent Council of Ministers in order to fulfil its main function of holding fair elections,' said Natalia Kiselova, chair of the BSP–United Left parliamentary group.

Hayri Sadakov, the chair of the Alliance for Rights and Freedoms (APS) parliamentary group, said that Gyurov was the candidate with the fewest ties to what he described as a “captured state” (referring to undue political and business influence over state institutions). “We expect real action and tangible results,” he said.

‘The nomination of Andrey Gyurov as caretaker prime minister is a step towards fairer elections because he is a counterpoint to the other candidates, who are a continuation of this government. Currently, they are making a circus of the chamber by saying they will regulate prices, while their oligarchic-mafia model is crushing all competition,’ said Velichie leader Ivelin Mihaylov.

The There Is Such a People (ITN) party took a different view: ‘The choice of Andrey Gyurov means there will not be fair elections,’ said Toshko Yordanov, chair of the party’s parliamentary group. He added that the legal disputes surrounding Gyurov’s status as deputy governor of the Bulgarian National Bank could cause issues.

Denitsa Sacheva of GERB said that the GERB–SDS alliance had not expressed a preference for a caretaker prime minister during consultations with the president. According to Sacheva, the outcome of the consultations had clearly been predetermined by the parliamentary group of PP–DB.

Editor: Miglena Ivanova

Posted in English by E. Radkova