Will rifts in the relations between the partners in the ruling majority smooth out?

The leader of GERB Boyko Borissov expressed suspicion that someone is pulling the strings of DRF-MRF (Democracy, Rights and Freedoms - Movement for Rights and Freedoms). The reason for this is yesterday's declaration of Ahmed Dogan's people, in which they accused the government of being tied to Delyan Peevski (MRF-New Beginning). Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov believes that with time there will be an adjustment of views.

DRF is the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) faction whose members remained loyal to MRF founder and former honorary chair Ahmed Dogan when the party split in 2024, with the other faction being Delyan Peevski's MRF - New Beginning.

Boyko Borissov admitted that he was surprised by the DRF-MRF declaration.

Boyko Borissov - chairman of the GERB-UDF group:

"Yesterday they spoke very vilely, this made me sad, and I am most dangerous when I am saddened."

BNT: Will you officially part ways with DRF-MRF, given that arrows are constantly being thrown between you?
- I'm not breaking up with anyone, and we can't reject support."

He added that talks with Dogan's party have been calm in recent days, and they discussed the appointment of people from DRF-MRF to government positions.

Boyko Borissov - chairman of the GERB-UDF group:

"Half an hour before that, Dzhevdet Chakurov said at the meeting that I have their full support for everything... Someone is pulling their strings."

- BNT: Who?

"I don’t know, but if I knew, I would tell you."

Whoever wants to overthrow the government should should bear the responsibility, Borissov said.

Boyko Borissov - chairman of GERB-UDF group

"I don’t believe that Ahmed Dogan wants the government to fall and for new elections. If he does, that’s his business. In Bankya, we say – you can take it by force, but you can’t give it by force. No matter how unstable it is, because the exact word is ‘rickety,’ from where I come from, it’s better than anything else."

In response, the DRF - MRF demanded that the recordings from the Council for Joint Governance be made public, stating that they want to be a principled and predictable partner with a serious coalition culture.

Valentin Tonchev - DRF-MRF:

"No one is pulling our strings. We are an independent parliamentary group. From the very beginning, MRF entered this government first to ensure state stability, with a focus on the country's membership in the Eurozone, and second, to dismantle the Peevski model."

BNT: If you don't get an appointment in the second echelon, will you leave the government?

"We support the governing majority; it’s obvious there is a hidden majority. We can’t leave if we don’t participate in something real."

Regarding Delian Peevski, there is no doubt that the government will remain.

Delyan Peevski - chairman of the 'MRF - New Beginning' group:

And why shouldn't there be a government? Because Ahmed Dogan or the big bosses said so? There will be a government. After some binge drinking, he woke up, deals didn’t work out, appointments didn’t happen, and he commanded his little mischievous servants."

We Continue the Change-Democratic Bulgaria (WCC-DB) described the government's strategy as a "corruption paradise," embedded in the budget and appointments in regulatory bodies.

Kirill Petkov - WCC-DB:

"And the government must decide whether they are subservient to Jabba or stand upright and act forward. If they continue like this, there is a risk. And actually, the risk is not coming from the Alliance for Rights and Freedoms. The risk comes from their dependence on Peevski's people. That's the real risk."

"Vazrazhdane" do not believe in the stability of the government.

Kostadin Kostadinov - chairman of "Vazrazhdane" group:

"This government is doomed. It’s a matter of weeks, maybe months, before it falls. And not only because they can’t agree within the coalition on posts, not on principles, but because there is external pressure on the state. We’ve said it many times, and we will repeat it. The 'Perestroika' in Europe has begun."

The Prime Minister emphasised the importance of predictability among partners in the government.

Rosen Zhelyazkov - Prime Minister of the Republic of Bulgaria said:

"When there’s no predictability, there’s distrust. I think the rifts will smooth out more and more. I don’t believe anyone has an interest in the coalition not continuing its partnership. Furthermore, three of the parties that signed the coalition agreement are stable, and the supporting party, which is part of the parliamentary majority, has certain requirements. It is important that these requirements are predictable and do not surprise the other partners."

Zhelyazkov believes that the turbulence within the government is an inevitable process of adjustment between the political forces.