Bulgarian press review, November 6, 2009

Press Review
Sofia, November 5 (BTA)

THE HOME SCENE

"Troud" quotes Prime Minister Boyko Borissov as saying Thursday at a roundtable on the reforms and the future of the State Agency for National Security (SANS): "Ninety six million leva are budgeted for SANS. A lot of money is allocated, and 92 per cent are spent on salaries. As a result, only scandals have been generated over the last three months. This is the tangible output of SANS Inc." The PM was categorically that the Agency receives a "vote of confidence" but it should produce, say, proactive information on energy security and whether a gas crisis is likely. According to Borissov, the worst damage inflicted on SANS is the loss of its credibility with the foreign partner services. SANS Chairman Tsvetlin Yovchev noted that "the stability of the national security system against external destructive elements is below the critical minimum." "Unauthorized access to classified information is not infrequent," Yovchev admitted. Prosecutor General Boris Velchev recommended to the SANS Chairman to form a strong legal team.

Former SANS Special Actions Department director Velin Hadjolov says in a "24 Chassa" interview that Deputy Prime Minister Tsvetan Tsvetanov is misleading Prime Minister Borissov by taking over control of SANS. In this way, the PM forfeits the statutory responsibility and he is deprived of the role of a leading factor in the management of crisis situations relevant to the protection of national security and statehood. "The adoption of the proposed revisions of the SANS Act completely ruins a modern special service, which has been granted autonomy and powers to act effectively for the detection, prevention and frustration of crimes threatening national security," Hadjolov argues.

* * *
Under the headline "Borissov Fires Passport Mafia," "Troud" reports that the Prime Minister has ordered Justice Minister Margarita Popova to dismiss the bureaucrats who granted Bulgarian citizenship to criminals. At the Cabinet meeting on Wednesday, a row reportedly erupted over amendments to the Bulgarian Citizenship Act proposed by Minister without Portfolio Bojidar Dimitrov. Popova objected to part of the provisions. The PM ordered a commission to reformulate the provisions within a couple of weeks and Popova to conduct a audit in the meantime. He was adamant that "everybody who took part in those commissions and who gave citizenship to criminals must go."

* * *
"Sega" quotes a progress report of the prosecuting magistracy according to which prosecutors have dismissed another 70,958 cases by reason of lapse of time. Now these crimes will go unpunished because all limitation periods for their completion and referral to court have expired. In practice, the perpetrators are thus amnestied. And they were known to prosecutors under 1,675 of the dismissed cases, or 2.4 per cent of the total. Last year 235,659 cases were dismissed by reason of lapse of time. At the end of June 2009, 672,616 investigations were halted, mainly because the investigating police officers were unable to detect the perpetrator. The prosecuting magistracy wants a new regulation of these case files: they insist that the Interior Ministry do not send them these cases unless the perpetrator of the offence has been detected.

* * *
"Troud" comments on "How Ataka Became GERB's Closest Ally." "One possible explanation is that the two parties' leaders found common ground and respect each other. The mutual respect between [Boyko] Borissov and [Volen] Siderov, however, does not lay sufficiently solid foundations for partnership between the two parties." The author describes as "unique" the history of the increasing political closeness between the two formations. "It is part of the process of transformation of Bulgarian politics from minority action into leader conduct. That is why the present link between GERB and Ataka is rather a personal symbiosis rather than a serious intention to enter into political marriage. Ataka could not pretend to be a pro-government party too long and trouble-free, nor can GERB rely on its sustained support," political scientist Dimiter Avramov reasons.

* * *
"Troud" runs an interview with National Assembly Deputy Chairman Georgi Pirinski headlined "BSP Is Bunch of Thieves? Stop Slander!" Pirinski argues that beyond any doubt a wholesale campaign is being launched to oust the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) from meaningful participation in politics. "This is a ruinous and myopic policy. The incumbent power-holders do not rely on arguments but on insinuations presented effectively, and the public proved susceptible to such a campaign." The interviewee acknowledges that leftist dispositions ever less find their exponent in the BSP. "Instead, a sort of vacuum is beginning to emerge and the question is whether the BSP will manage to convince the people who want to see a Left alternative that it is capable of offering it or will continue to bog itself down in infighting and political feebleness."

* * *
"Sega" reports that, surprisingly, the Cabinet decided to keep the ceiling on pensions until December 31, 2011 instead of lifting it for newly granted pensions as from next year. The daily asks: "How long we will be lying to people that the ceiling on pensions is going?" Assoc. Prof. Yordan Hristoskov, former governor of the National Social Security Institute, argues that the keeping of the ceiling will only lead to a loss of Bulgarians' trust in the social security system. "To avoid such a negative effect, the entry into force of such provisions in the law, which is justified from the point of view of social insurance principles, must be observed and by no means must be delayed. Moreover, they do not exert excessive fiscal pressure, i.e. they do not cost much to the public purse," according to Hristoskov.

* * *
"The transition in Bulgaria has ended," Dr Zhelyu Zhelev, this country's first democratically elected president, writes in "Sega." He is categorical that the Bulgarian transition is not stage-managed, because such sweeping processes and the replacement of one socio-political system by another cannot be stage-managed. "If stage management implies borrowing the experience of the Western democracies, then we have sought this ourselves." Zhelev notes that the transition from totalitarianism to democracy has been completed. But there are other transitions as well: to full-fledged economic integration into the EU etc.

ECONOMY

"Bankers Back Djankov for Low Interest Rates," "24 Chassa" says. On Thursday bankers declared themselves in favour of the initiative of Deputy Prime Minister Simeon Djankov for lowering interest rates in Bulgaria. On Wednesday Djankov met with representatives of the Association of Banks in Bulgaria (ABB) to discuss measures for improvement of lending, lowering of interest rates, assisting business for a faster recovery of the economy from the crisis. One of the measures discussed was the issuing of Eurobonds by the Government. According to First Investment Bank Executive Director Maya Georgieva, this would be an "exceedingly smart move." ABB Executive Board Chair and DSK Bank Chief Executive Director Violina Marinova sees a positive effect in the release of resources. Another contemplated idea is to scrap the requirement that banks guarantee by government securities 100 per cent of the assets on on-budget accounts they manage.

"Central Bank Expects 0.5% Growth in 2010," writes "Pari." "Bulgaria has the most stable fiscal policy of all European countries," Finance Minister Simeon Djankov told members of the National Assembly Economic Policy Committee and Budget and Finance Committee, who approved the 2010 draft budget on first reading. The Minister's thesis was backed by central bank Governor Ivan Iskrov. "We are one of the few EU Member States which will have a balanced budget next year," Iskrov said. He told the MPs that the central bank has developed a best-case and a worst-case scenario for the development of the Bulgarian economy in 2010. According to the best-case scenario, the gross domestic product will grow between 0 and 0.5 per cent and the inflation rate will approximate 2 per cent. The worst-case scenario is identical with the macroeconomic parameters set by the Government in the budget: 2 per cent contraction of GDP and 2.2 per cent inflation.

Interviewed for "Standart News," Democrats for Strong Bulgaria leader Ivan Kostov sayd that financial expert Simeon Djankov, who evokes very ambivalent reactons, managed to do two exceedingly complicated things during the first 100 days in office of the new Government. "First, he managed to press expenditures down to the limits of expected revenues without updating the budget, which was the easier way but he probably does not feel enough support in his subordinate administration. Secondly, in an emergency situation he managed to produce a budget bill on time, considering that the process was interrupted and sabotaged by the previous government." Kostov, who is a former finance minister and prime minister, describes the 2010 national budget as "intelligent and creative."

Sova Harris Executive Director Vassil Tonchev argues in an interview for "Novinar" that now that it is 100 days old, the Government must come up with an anti-crisis plan. In his opinion, from now on the Government is expected to present to the public its measures and a plan for the country's anti-crisis development. "It is already clear that we are now at the peak of the crisis which will probably continue for as long as until the middle of next year, or probably even until the end of 2010. What is seen, however, is that things in this respect are lagging behind or are not sufficiently convincing," Tonchev says.

Links to some Bulgarian info websites in English:

· http://www.bta.bg/site/en/indexe.shtml
· http://www.novinite.com/index.php
· http://www.focus-fen.net/

Most discussed topics of the day – November 6, 2009

· Bulgaria confirmed the sixth A (H1N1) flu death of 53-year-old man with cirrhosis, the chief health inspector Dr. Tencho Tenev stated today. The man has stayed sick at home and went to see a doctor very late. Flu pandemic will be declared Monday in Sofia over the increasing rate of flu cases.

· Police officers in the Chief Directorate Combating Organized Crime have taken immediate action together with their colleagues from the Ministry of Interior Regional Police Department in the town of Pleven after they have received signal that two 19-year-old girls have been forced to get into a car. The girls were found Friday locked in a house in the village of Barkach. Three mеn have been detained over kidnapping. Later it became clear that the kidnappers have taken a ransom at the amount of BGN 30 000.

· The prosecuting magistracy proposed to Prosecutor General Boris Velchev that former labour and social policy minister and current Socialist MP Emilia Maslarova be stripped of immunity. Maslarova will be investigated for alleged abuse of funding under the Beautiful Bulgaria Programme. Maslarova handed the Parliament Chair a written consent to give up her immunity as MP, because she does not want to obstruct the investigation.