CARETAKER PRIME MINISTER SUPPORTS THE IDEA OF NGO’S TO SET UP A CIVIC ELECTION BOARD

Caretaker Prime Minister Ognyan Gerdzhikov called for the NGOs to set up a civic Election Board as soon as possible ahead of the March 26 early parliamentary elections, the Council of Ministers press office said on 2nd of February. Gerdzhikov underlined that a priority for the caretaker government was to conduct the elections in a calm and secure environment, adhering to the requirements of the law.

The Prime Minister said that similar boards functioned successfully under the previous two caretaker governments and the practice should be continued. He added that the civic sector publicly expressed willingness to set up such an election board and he fully supported the idea.

"I am convinced that the NGOs which have closely monitored the election campaigns and the elections over the last two decades have the expertise and the civic motivation to cooperate with the institutions and the Bulgarian citizens in making sure that the elections are fair, transparent and held in compliance with all legal rules. Our non-governmental sector is strong enough and eager to leave no institution involved in the elections to delay or neglect its responsibilities. In many cases, namely civic associations have helped institutions to work better for the democracy and the society,” he said in his address.

Gerdzhikov noted that his government wanted to prepare the elections in the best possible way. The decision of the Supreme Administrative Court that voting machines must be