Radev Criticizes the Government for Appointments and the Budget

Before the media, President Rumen Radev expressed sharp criticism of the actions of the ruling party, emphasizing potential violations of the law and constitutional principles. At the center of his comments was the appointment of a special trade manager, which, according to the head of state, is outside the framework of the law.

According to Radev, the appointment of the special trade manager is illegal, as the procedure was not followed. According to the regulatory framework, the manager must develop a detailed six-month plan for his activities, present it to the Security Council to the Council of Ministers for approval. The President questioned the observance of this procedure. "When did Mr. Spetsov develop such a detailed 6-month plan, when did the members of this council get acquainted, when did they approve it, when he didn't even attend the council," Radev asked rhetorically.

The President emphasized that the very fact of the appointment is not the most important problem. "The special trade manager himself is not so important, the more important thing is that they put him above the Constitution and above the laws," Radev stated. He expressed concern about the risk of future violations in the context of the case with "Lukoil". According to him, "an activity that is in violation of the law in its infancy, has a huge risk that it will lead to absolute violations."

In his comments, the head of state warned of a crisis in Bulgarian politics, which he considers more serious than the potential crisis with fuels. "There is a bigger crisis than the potential crisis with fuels, and that is the crisis of Bulgarian politics, it is much more terrible," Radev noted. He described a trend of weakening the debate and replacing it with authoritarian practices. "See what is happening in the commissions, see what is happening in parliament - the debate disappears, when the debate disappears, politics disappears and dictatorship comes in its place, because the Constitution no longer matters, the laws do not matter, the arguments do not matter," he added. Radev concluded that the ruling party "violated all legal, political, I can say and moral norms."

Regarding the postponement given by the US and Great Britain to Bulgaria regarding the sanctions against "Lukoil", President Radev noted that this was expected. According to him, "it was perfectly clear that there would be a license, not only for Bulgaria, but for all European countries affected, because the US is a strategic ally of Europe," he emphasized. "All attempts at heroic poses, at a demonstration of some kind of super-achievements in diplomacy sound a little ridiculous against this background," Radev said.

Regarding the imposed veto on the law on petroleum products, the President commented on the actions of the ruling party, which, according to him, reveal their true intentions. "It is indicative of the way the mentors of the ruling party tried to use this case, the way a law was passed and the essence of the law, which reveals their true intentions, which lead to situations like "Bulgartabac" and KTB," Radev said. He pointed out several specific problems, including the removal of guarantees from the 2023 law, the voting of powers to dispose of shares and property, which, according to him, contradicts the Constitution, and giving indulgences to the special trade manager, which exempts him from administrative and judicial control. "I am concerned about the Bulgarian Constitution and the rule of law," Radev stated.

At the end of his speech, President Radev also criticized the draft budget, which, according to him, shows a lack of respect for the partners in the tripartite council and for the citizens. "The way the budget is drawn up and presented is the personification of lack of respect. I think everyone has already spoken very clearly about the budget. Even those who have made it, are giving up on this budget," he noted. Radev concluded that the budget is "more for political survival, for buying electoral love, but we will all pay the consequences," the President emphasized.