Bulgarian President Gives Caretaker Govt Mandate to GERB

Bulgarian President, Rosen Plevneliev says the Parliament will be adjourned by the end of next week after passing some key legislation pieces. Photo by BGNES

Bulgaria's President Rosen Plevneliev is giving Monday the mandate to the center-right Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria party, GERB, to form an interim government.

On Friday, the President conducted consultations with all parliamentary represented political parties, except the far-right, nationalist Ataka, which boycotted them.

On Thursday the Parliament approved the resignation of the GERB government of Prime Minister, Boyko Borisov, amidst unprecedented since 1997 protest rallies against unbearable utility bills and wide-spread poverty that turned into a civil unrest against the political model of ruling the country.

After the consultations, Plevneliev said the following: "We heard the clear positions of all parliamentary groups and we are moving in the direction of appointing a caretaker government."

According to article 111 of the Bulgarian Constitution, after consultations with the parliamentary groups, the President assigns the largest group the task to appoint a Cabinet within a 7-day deadline. If this fails, then the President does the same with the second largest group.

The largest group in the Parliament is the one of Borisov's GERB; the second largest is the group of the left-wing Bulgarian Socialist Party, BSP. Both have already declared they are not interested in forming an interim government.

If the second group declines, then the mandate is given to a third group of the President's choice. If a group manages to appoint a Cabinet, the President tables a proposal with the Parliament to elect their candidate.

However, if all three groups decline, the President must appoint a caretaker government, and then, with one single decree, adjourn the Parliament and schedule a new general election no later than two months after the termination of the powers of the last government.

The caretaker government's term is up to two months as well, with its main task being the organization of snap election.

Plevneliev has further informed that the Parliament will be adjourned by the end of next week after passing some key legislation pieces to pave the way for a productive work of the caretaker Cabinet and tame social tensions.

The snap election will be held no later than mid-May.

Since the fall of Communism, Bulgaria has had two caretaker governments – in 1994 and in 1997.

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