site.btaMedia Review: May 10

POLITICS – ELECTIONS

Capital Weekly leads with a story headlined “Bulgaria in the New EU – Dangerous Turns Ahead”. The story highlights that the European Union has reached a turning point. Its security, prosperity and values are at risk. The European Parliament (EP) elections will shift the balance in the EP and bring new priorities for the European Commission. It is crucial for Bulgaria to send to Brussels well-prepared MEPs who uphold clear priorities and work for their implementation.

The European Union - the most successful geopolitical project in history – is at a turning point. Under threat are its security (from Russia), its prosperity (from American and Chinese protectionism and industrial subsidies), as well as its values (because of the rise of the authoritarian regimes, nationalism and online disinformation). Given the rapid rise of artificial intelligence and the inevitability of climate change - two areas where the EU cannot cope on its own, however much it wants to - the future looks increasingly complex.

Against this backdrop, the European Parliament elections are next month. The citizens of the Union will cast their vote to decide the direction they wish the EU develop. Bulgarians will have an additional question to answer. After a decade in which relations with Brussels were mainly transactional - the EU was merely giving some money, now that will no longer be the case. Where Bulgarians would want their place to be in this new Union is perhaps the most important question for the next few years. Regardless who the next European Commission President will be, the EU will have new priorities for the next five years.

Foreign policy in all likelihood will be in the hands of the Commission (and not, as the case was until now, independent from it). Security and defence will be at the core of policies. Europe will continue to borrow funding, and free money for member states will only come after real reforms with full respect for democratic principles.  

This macro framework raises new questions about Bulgaria's place in the changed European Union in the next five years. Until 2020, Sofia-EU relations were relatively clear: [GERB leader] Boyko Borissov was obeying the demands of Germany and the European Commission so that they would not give him trouble, while at the local level he was doing whatever he wanted, unhindered. With Merkel's fall from power, Putin's war and the protests in Bulgaria and the completely different political situation, this status quo can no longer be restored. 

The tightening of the rules for the allocation of EU funds, the creation of the European Public Prosecutor's Office to monitor abuse of EU funds, and the adoption of the Recovery and Resilience Plans, which have completely new rules, have effectively changed the logic of EU funding.

Bulgaria will thus have its "Greek" moment, but without the crisis of 2009-2010: when a well-meaning relationship with money transfers will turn into disputes, scandals and increasingly difficult coexistence.

*** 

 bTV:The difference between the first and the second political force in the upcoming snap parliamentary elections is over 8%. A two-party cabinet is possible, show the results of the national survey, financed and implemented jointly by bTV and Market Links. The poll was conducted among 1,007 adults across Bulgaria between April 27 and May 9 in face-to-face interviews and online surveys.

The GERB-UDF coalition comes first, enjoying the support of 26% of voters in the parliamentary and 26.4% for the European elections.

The Continue the Change-Democratic Bulgaria coalition is second with 17.7% in the national elections and 18.6% in the European Parliament elections.

The Movement for Rights and Freedoms ranks third with 13.2% support in the parliamentary elections and 11.7% in the European elections.

Vazrazhdane would get 12.9% in the elections for the National Assembly and 11.1% in the elections for members of the European Parliament.

The Bulgarian Socialist Party is fifth with 8.1% in the parliamentary elections and 8.4% in the European elections.

"The picture of electoral attitudes has been relatively constant in recent months," said sociologist Dobromir Zhivkov of Market Links agency.

"The trends and dynamics of electoral attitudes are not too great. We see a difference between the vote for the national parliament and the European parliament in those parties that are more involved in Bulgaria's European path. They will presumably be able to mobilise more of their supporters. In the case of Vazrazhdane. the mobilisation for the European elections will be lower," the sociologist added.

According to him, CC-DB have failed to achieve their goals declared when entering politics and the government, which has led to the decline in their electoral support and the 9% difference with GERB-UDF.

"This big promise of big change leads to this. When what is promised cannot be delivered, there is a backlash. The second thing is the 'assemblage' [a term used to refer to the joint ruling between GERB and CC-DB with MRF's support, which the  parties refused to openly call a coalition]. It was perceived as unprincipled by many. This was cleverly used by GERB. Their aim was to weaken the wave that supported CC-DB. Another is the link between GERB voters. There have been many dependencies and networks that have worked over the years. GERB supporters prefer the status quo. There are also voters who express authentic support for the values of GERB and for its leader Boyko Borissov," he said.

"GERB remains at the same level. There is no increase.

There are movements that do not change the big picture. Rather, Continue the Change are losing, Zhivkov said. 

"We see a five-party parliament. For the time being, it can be seen that There Is Such a People (TISP) are not successfully mobilising themselves to be part of the next parliament," the sociologist said. According to the poll, TISP remains below the 4% threshold for entering Parliament with 3.2%. Slavi Trifonov's party has 2.4% support for the European elections.

Bulgarian National Radio also covers the survey results. 

NEW HOSPITALS 

Mediapool: The scandal with the permit that the caretaker government issued to the private hospital "Mom and Me" in Sofia and its strikingly fast revocation the following day after public backlash and political reactions, once again raised the question how new hospitals in Bulgaria are allowed. The truth is that this depends more on political favouritism towards an investor than on clear rules and objective criteria.

 Over the years, politicians, investors and government officials have repeatedly spoken of 'pressure' and 'lobbying'. However, no one has officially testified that such pressure was put on them to allow the hospital to open, or if they have, their testimony is being kept under the table and secret. The inspections carried out so far have been concluded without any evidence that administrative violations or a crime have been committed. The article examines the process of opening a new hospital and the bodies, whose approval is needed, coming to the conclusion that there are no objective criteria and the relationship between hospitals and politicians are tumultuous, passionate, and often times a love-hate one. An example is how GERB used to attack the project to build a Heart and Brain hospital in Kazichene, near Sofia, in the first half of 2022. Later in September of that year, however, GERB leader Boyko Borissov opened his election campaign from another hospital from the same chain in the northern city of Pleven.

Capital also runs an article about the topic of how the opening of new hospitals can be linked to political approval or disapproval.

ECONOMY – PENSIONS 

Trud: The chances for Bulgarians to get a second pension are minimal, it transpired from the data of the Financial Supervision Commission (FSC).  

The vast majority of people who reach retirement age cannot count on receiving a second life-long pension from a private fund. The reason for this is that they do not have enough money for a life-long pension in their personal accounts in universal pension funds.

At the end of last year, the total number of people receiving payments from private pension funds was 20,656. Of these, only 2,632 people, or 12.7%  of the total, are receiving life-long pensions, the FSC's final data show. The remaining 18,024 people, or nearly 9 out of every 10 insured people, receive their money from private universal funds in deferred payments. They will only receive this money for a few months or years and then in old age they will only be able to rely on the State pension. 

LUKOIL INSPECTIONS

24 Chasa: More than 190 employees of the Customs Agency and the National Revenue Agency will take part in the inventory of the tax warehouses of Lukoil Neftohim Burgas AD and Lukoil Bulgaria Ltd, the Finance Ministry reported on its website.  

The control actions, which stared on Friday, are of joint teams of employees of the two agencies, the Ministry of Interior and the State Agency "State Reserve and Wartime Stocks".

The main purpose of this operation, which was ordered by caretaker Prime Minister Dimitar Glavchev, is to carry out an inventory by recording the physical stocks of energy products, including bioethanol and biodiesel, stored on the territory of the tax warehouses. 

VICTORY DAY CELEBRATIONS - DUPNITSA

NOVA TV reports a scandal in the western town of Dupnitsa after the local socialist Mayor, Parvan Dangov, decided to raise the Russian flag in front of the tow hall building on Europe Day, May 9, which is also when Russia celebrates Victory Day and the defeat of Nazi Germany. Russian songs praising Russia's victory in World War II were also played on the sound system. Dangov categorically stated that he was not looking for provocations, but the Russian flag caused a wave of disapproval in Dupnitsa. The flag was removed thee times by a local Municipal Councillor and MP candidate Nikolay Tabakov.