site.btaUPDATED Continue the Change Candidate for Central Bank Governor Withdraws, TISP Keep Theirs, Coalition Partners Meet to Discuss Situation

Continue the Change's (CC) candidate for Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) governor Andrey Gurov Sunday announced withdrawing his nomination. The matter was in the focus of a meeting of the leaders of the parties in the government coalition later in the day, and that the power-sharing There Is Such a People (TISP) confirmed there that they see no reason to pull out their nominee and only other candidate in the race, Lyubomir Karimanski. Speaking to the press ahead of the meeting, Prime Minister Kiril Petkov said that CC are not going to back Karimanski.

The nomination of two candidates by parties in the government coalition has caused a deep rift in it.

Gurov's motives

Gurov wrote in his Facebook post that "after the practical division within the ruling coalition over the central bank governor's election, it became clear that no broad parliamentary majority exist at this time which can support this election". 

"As CC Floor Leader, I have always upheld the public's interest, which currently requires statesmanlike actions and thinking," he said. 

"Given the lack of coalition support, let my opponent decide for himself whether he wants to leave this important and responsible election in the opposition's hands," Gurov said. According to Gurov, this is an ethical choice, which is part of the requirements for the central bank governor to have high moral standards and a good reputation.

There have been repeated calls for both candidates to step down from the race to allow the nomination of a unifying figure that would be supported by all parties in the government coalition and, possibly, the opposition.

Gurov also said that the post of the BNB governor is very important and crucial for achieving true change in the State. "Such [change] will only happen if the central bank assumes its role of a regulator and clears our financial system from the accumulated from corruption capital, which will otherwise continue to exert its destructive role on the formation of basic public and economic processes in this country," he said. 

At the news conference before the coalition council, Prime Minister Petkov said that there is no obstacle for the incumbent BNB Governor to remain on his post until the coalition agrees on a common candidate. "The struggle for high positions must not be allowed to overshadow the Government's truly important goals," the Prime Minister said. 

He noted that Continue the Change will not support Karimanski's nomination due to "concerns related to his biography". 

Andrey Gurov cannot afford to participate in an election, which due to some division within the governing coalition, will be decided by GERB and the Movement for Rights and Freedoms, Petkov commented. 

He said he will inform his coalition partners about Gurov's decision. 

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In a Facebook post earlier in the day, TISP leader Slavi Trifonov said he has no reason to withdraw Karimanski's nomination. 

Going into the meeting with the coalition partners, TISP Floor Leader Toshko Yordanov said that Kiril Petkov, Finance Minister Assen Vassilev and Continue the Change are engaged in political extortion against TISP and the Regional Development Ministry, which is headed by TISP's Grozdan Karadjov. He also said that Karimanski is their party's candidate and they will back him firmly.

He confirmed that after the meeting, and went further. "The partners [from Continue the Change] are using the problem with [road] construction companies as a tool for pressure towards some decision and on top of that they are dropping hints that there is some corruption scheme we would activate. I don't know what that could be. They know there is nothing of the kind. We discussed it with them and they said there is no such scheme," said Yordanov.

He was referring to a disruption of road repairs due to a decision by the caretaker government to put on halt all projects over suspected foul play. Trying to deal with the situation, the Regional Development Ministry proposed that all all road repair companies whose contracts were suspended, be paid and be allowed to resume work until new public procurement procedures are held and contracts awarded.

The Prime Minister said at the news conference before the meeting that his party would propose to the coalition partners strengthening parliamentary control over payments to companies which have done construction work in violation of the law under the GERB government". He said that all payments for construction work will be audited.

Yordanov told reporters after the coalition council meeting that the Regional Development Ministry gives up its proposal for the payment. "Let the Council of Ministers decide what to pay and to which company, and then the responsibility will go to [Prime Minister] Kiril Petkov and [Finance Minister] Assen Vassilev," he said.

He added that TISP will propose that a parliamentary committee be put in charge of approving big payments for all ministries.

Asked whether there is a risk for the government coalition to fall apart, Yordanov said: "We are not undermining the coalition. We are just proposing more parliamentary control."

Returning to the issue of the central bank governorship, he said: "We will go ahead and nominate him [to the plenary]. My suspicion is that our colleagues will try to postpone the election of the BNB governor. They have a right to do that." He believes, though, that "the longer this issue drags on, the worse it will be for all".

Vladislav Panev of Democratic Bulgaria, which is a member of the ruling coalition, congratulated Gurov for his dignity and decision to step down from the race. He said that Karimanski's nomination will be discussed during a meeting of his Parliamentary Group, but Democratic Bulgaria will most likely not support it. "The better option for the time being is a possible new procedure and keeping the incumbent BNB Governor [in office]. After all, it's doubtful that anything bad can happen to the central bank in the coming months," Panev commented. 

Closing specialized jurisdictions: the most important step

The Prime Minister said that the struggle for the BNB governorship must not stop "the most important legislative actions that are to be made in the coming days: closing the specialized courts and prosecution service, and adopting other amendments to the Judiciary Act". "It is a legislative change that will hopefully show Bulgarian people the unity in the ranks of the ruling coalition, because we cannot fight corruption without carrying through this reform," he added.

At the end of his statement for the press, Petkov reiterated that "no decisions on North Macedonia and Ukraine will be made outside the Bulgarian Parliament".

He thus responded to accusations that he is trying to bypass the legislature and make a single-handed decision about lifting the Bulgarian veto for the opening of EU accession talks with Skopje.

As for Ukraine, he was referring to the the controversy over whether or not Bulgaria should be sending military aid to Kyiv. The power-sharing Democratic Bulgaria is the most vocal advocate of sending such aid while the Socialists have threatened to leave the government coalition if this happens.