Bulgaria: What was said in the Last Working Day of the 48th National Assembly

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The MPs adopted a declaration condemning the acts of violence against Bulgarians in North Macedonia without debate. The decision was taken with 184 votes out of 185 voters. One abstained.

The people's representatives insisted that the authorities take targeted measures to combat hate crimes in all forms and manifestations, as well as to reveal and punish the perpetrators of the attack against Hristiyan Pendikov. A 30-minute break followed.

After that, the parties also read declarations at the conclusion of their work in this parliament:

Desislava Atanasova - Chairwoman of the PG of GERB-SDS: "At the beginning of the 48th National Assembly, the GERB group made a commitment to make efforts to have a government. It was clear that the formation of a regular government required a number of compromises. Convincing majorities emerged on many topics, lacked political courage. The GERB group was ready to take on this political responsibility, which went beyond the mandate given to us by the voters. We consistently shook hands with your opponents and proposed a Council of Ministers without party figures. We were ready to have serious talks. We proposed various formulas - government of national consensus, from programmatic to expert government. We were ready to have an anti-crisis government. We met clichés. Thank you for the courage shown by the PG side, who were ready to give our government a chance. It is no secret that we relied mostly on DB, whose role could be key. They had a clear choice - work with us or give another mandate with unknown length to the president's caretaker government. They chose the latter.

Today we believe that the political crisis can be solved with political courage. We are convinced that the political crisis can neither be solved in a way convenient for the parties, nor with eccentricity, nor with slogans. The lack of political capacity is the main reason for the impasse in which our country finds itself. The political crisis cannot be resolved without us. An attempt was made to destroy our party. GERB-SDS is a stable and unavoidable fact and is no longer in isolation, but at the center of the political process. This can become a permanent reason for solving the crisis.

We interacted with all political forces - something that was not possible in the 45th, 46th and 47th National Assembly. We cannot be outflanked. The 48th National Assembly failed to produce a regular government, but it did manage to take a number of important decisions. After Kirill Petkov's cabinet could not take a clear position on Ukraine, it happened now, important laws were adopted for the implementation of the Recovery and Resilience Plan, steps were taken for the Eurozone and Schengen. Financial stability was shaken by the former Finance Minister Asen Vassilev. With inflation under control, the economic problems will not end. The challenge for the 49th National Assembly will be the dispute about economic growth - this is a costly mistake of the parties of the change. On behalf of the GERB-SDS group, I thank you for agreeing to take over the presidency of the 48th National Assembly at an important moment, and I apologize for putting you through this test."

Andrey Gyurov - chairman of the PG of "We Continue the Change": "We are closing the 48th National Assembly and it is time for an assessment. We have one bad and one good news. The bad is that this was the parliament of missed opportunities. The good is that the groups are clear. One a group of people say - this is how it is here. Your normal is not the European normal. There is a future where it doesn't matter what kind of person you are, the school educates, the hospitals treat and the attorney general doesn't talk to the boss. This is the parliament of the ‘paper coalition’ The changes in the electoral legislation became a symbol of this parliament - the legalization of electoral abuses.

We raised salaries in hospitals, passed key laws on Recovery and Resilience Plan. Did the National Assembly continue the judicial reform - no, there was no desire. Did this National Assembly do something about the fight against corruption - no, it refused, it was not a priority. That is why we are at the bottom of the European corruption index. This is what’s left for the next parliament. For another time, the victims of domestic violence remained. It was more important for GERB, ‘Vazrazhdane’ and BSP to sow fears. Saving Geshev was more important than saving the Black Sea.

In addition to lagging behind the ‘Schengen’ goal, we are also lagging behind in readiness for the Eurozone. Who, ask the parties who filed the same amendment along with the spelling mistakes in it. We will not miss this National Assembly - judicial reform, Schengen, the Eurozone were not among the priorities. The greatest danger is to be overcome by anger and despair. It's time for courage."

Mustafa Karadayi - Chairman of DPS: "We cannot be indifferent after another failure to solve the political crisis in the country. We have three early elections. Our recent history does not remember such a crisis. At this historical moment we receive the wisest lessons. Important is to learn the right lessons. The important thing is to transform crises into new opportunities. Today, everyone in charge will answer to themselves whether all efforts were made to solve the political and related crises, whether the National Assembly is working with the agenda of society. It is good everyone to answer honestly.

The people did not want elections, but to solve their problems. Today we have to admit that it was not the 48th National Assembly that failed because of the lack of dialogue. We got the message of the voters. We are the representatives of the whole people, and if the people must live together and would achieve success together, then the same applies to us. Thus, if there is division in society, there would be no success, it is the same in the National Assembly.

Political powers could achieve success with humility. The president gave enough time to the politicians to find a way, to create bridges for dialogue. It was worth the effort - that's our assessment of the political situation. We failed to air a cabinet, prices are rising, incomes are melting. We are going to elections again, but hopefully we are going to elections with lessons learned.

The conversations we have learned to have should be the basis for dialogue in the 49th National Assembly. Let the pre-election campaign have an honest dialogue".

Kostadin Kostadinov - chairman of "Vazrazhdane": "The judicial reform of Bulgaria depends on the Bulgarian people. We from ‘Vazrazhdane’, as believers in the wisdom of the Bulgarian people, welcome the fact that we will have the opportunity for a fifth remedial exam. We will work so that the Bulgarians see the truth as it is.

Two landmark successes and two landmark failures. The success - to renegotiate the Recovery and Resilience Plan in its part on energy. The second success of this National Assembly was a few minutes ago - defense of the Bulgarian cause for Macedonia.

A significant failure is the judicial reform that did not happen, sabotaged by those who made it their symbol, I believe. We will have 600,000 signatures against the requirement of 400,000 for the referendum on the euro. There are parties that fear the elections. That this parliament did not form a government is a good sign. Instead of creating political zombies, a much better solution is elections.

We from ‘Vazrazhdane’ appeal to all Bulgarians to tell them that the fate of Bulgaria is in your hands. Don't believe those who tell you that the result will be the same. Use this power as intended. Seek the truth, verify it. Because we have one major problem. People do not believe in the Bulgarian state. They think the political class is rotten.

The challenge before us is great, because if we do not convince the people that they are the power, God save Bulgaria! Bulgarians are the state - not the politicians".

Kornelia Ninova - President of BSP: "The 48th National Assembly failed to fulfill its most important task - cabinet and peace of mind for Bulgarians, and there are reasons for that. In the next National Assembly, the most important task is to guarantee the parliamentary republic and have a cabinet.

The war had an impact in two directions - military and socio-economic. The military took over. The first decision was to pay for the F-16, followed by military aid. This military advantage in speaking in Parliament was clothed in clichés. Whoever is pro-weapons is a Euro-Atlantic, the others are retrograde Eurasians. The labels were black and white. Forgetting that the lowest European value is peace. The war will end with a peace agreement. President Macron said that peace is possible when everyone sits at the same table. Chancellor Scholz said the same. The big ones are already looking towards peace. And this is the future if we want peace of mind.

Lack of a unified majority - that's what the people told us. This led us to situational solutions. This is instability. It is a lack of predictability. And that gave rise to speculation. Lately, there's been a line - good versus bad, status quo versus change. Everyone here is status quo because this word means the present.

It was a parliament marked by scandals, you faced scandals - drawers and gold bars against ‘Jemcorp’ and ‘Nexo’. The responsibility was being transferred - for a Europe of reason and peace, and we submitted the Schengen declaration. Concentration on the most important issue - prices, poverty and inequality. It became clear who the leftist party is and with leftist measures to achieve leftist results. Free textbooks, minimum wage. We saved the nurseries from closing. Dear Bulgarian citizens, the decision of whom you will send to this hall is yours. Think - with heart and with mind".

Hristo Ivanov - co-chairman of “Democratic Bulgaria”: "We are on the verge of leaving the National Assembly. Everyone chooses whether to wrap what happened in clichés or to start the campaign. This is not a separate parliament that has not announced a cabinet. It turns out that the Bulgarian parliament cannot permanently have moments and not even hidden majorities, but it did not dare to stand before the people.

The Bulgarian Parliamentary Republic began to mutate into a backup model, inherited from the pre-1991 era, in which the National Assembly met in sessions. The presidency runs it. We have the marks of a strange quasi-presidential regime. This speaks to a serious illness of our political system. Dialogue is the ability to reach a solution, to share power.

The reason we cannot broadcast governance is that we cannot negotiate the sharing of power. The authorities in Bulgaria created the practice of exercising outside the limits of the law. We must guarantee the rule of law. This is the shortest diagnosis of the crisis. We entered with short priorities - to have a parliamentary government related to Schengen, the rule of law and the conflict in Ukraine.

It was said in the last weeks of this National Assembly that a constitutional reform of the prosecutor's office is needed. This is a positive that we hope not to use as another tactical maneuver. If we do reform justice, I note this with moderate hope. DB was dialogic, but not unprincipled. We will not be someone's front. DB was the most civilized".

Stefan Yanev - chairman of "Bulgarian Rise": "For the fifth time we are going to elections and this is an indicator of the collapse of the political system and this worries me deeply. I swore with the price of my life to defend my fatherland, but here I was a mediator. Many of you think that it is their stick from Kubrat's bundle that is thicker. Invaluable time was lost in wrangling for power at any cost, instead of drawing up a plan on how to lead Bulgaria through this crisis.

In an attempt to build up a non-personal image, many missed the fact that more and more Bulgarians are wallowing in misery. We have run out of patience with this political indolence. If we all believe that we are the heirs of Athenian democracy, let us recall its foundations.

The country is running on official autopilot. The parties refused to form a government out of fear and selfishness. Who needs parties if they can't do the only thing they exist for. Bulgaria is in crisis, and if we don't want to see it on a bed in intensive care, we need work and sacrifices. Let us return after the elections tired but wiser".

Vezhdi Rashidov - Chairman of the National Assembly: "I crossed the threshold as the oldest member of parliament with the hope that after a series of screams, insults, opposition, we would try to find an understanding, take a step forward together. And it was as if magic happened in the first moments, but alas, as always, the illusion was short-lived. We plunged back into the familiar dystopia - procedures, speeches, breaks, voting and re-voting, and again I began to ask myself – for how long.

We are faced with a choice again. To think about what we do and what we leave and whether we destroy or create. I pray that the next election will bring more security, hope and unity. May the morning be wiser Our people deserve this. Good luck. I close the 48th National Assembly".

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