Bulgaria's Govt Guards Ex PM, Ethnic Turkish Leader against Threats

Bulgarian ethnic Turkish leader Ahmed Dogan (R) socialist party leader and former PM Sergey Stanishev (R) have been carefully guarded. Photo by actualno.com

Bulgarian ethnic Turkish leader Ahmed Dogan, socialist party leader and former PM Sergey Stanishev and former Interior Minister Rumen Petkov have been guarded by the National Protection Service due to threats.

This was announced by Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov on Friday.

"If there is even a 1% risk for these three's lives, we are obliged to take action, no matter how much it will cost the taxpayers," Borisov explained during Friday's Parliamentary Session. He stated that as an answer to a question by rightist leader and former Bulgarian PM Ivan Kostov, who claimed this was a waste of taxpayer money.

"Stanishev, Dogan and Petkov are apparently treated as national treasure," Kostov reacted to Borisov's statement. He pointed out that the National Protection Service is obliged only to guard the lives of former Prime Ministers.

"Ahmed Dogan is rich enough to pay for his own security," the rightist Blue Coalition leader added.

Boyko Borisov agreed with Kostov's remarks, but stated that, "as a professional", he would not take any risks, since if an assassination of some figure of such importance is to happen, the consequences for the state would be significant.

Borisov was the Chief Secretary of the Bulgarian Ministry of Interior between 2001 and 2005, with the rank of General.

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