site.btaGERB Leader Borissov: PM Denkov and Deputy PM Gabriel Will Say Whether or Not There Will Be Cabinet Rotation

Prime Minister Nikolay Denkov and Deputy Prime Minister Mariya Gabriel will say whether or not there will be a rotation in the Cabinet, GERB leader Boyko Borissov told journalists on Wednesday. He added that he is not participating in the negotiations. "When Denkov and Gabriel are ready, if they reach an agreement, I will tell you. If they do not reach an agreement, there will not be a rotation," Borissov said.

The decisions are taken in the Council of Ministers, he underscored, commenting on a February 11 statement by President Rumen Radev that the squabbles over the forthcoming rotation leave Bulgarian citizens "with the impression that it does not matter so much who the chess pieces will be on the power board, because it is evident that the decisions are taken by other people elsewhere."

Asked to comment on the transfer from Austria of persons registered as applicants for international protection, Borissov said he officially knows about 18 persons. "There could not have been such information three years ago. The entire people will pay for these years. When I was governing Bulgaria, such an airplane could not come and this would not have happened," he commented, adding that "there is nothing fatal". "The Interior Ministry is working much better and Border Police is giving much better results, and I know that from our partners outside," Borissov noted.

Commenting on the protests of agricultural producers, the GERB leader said: "Each move of either side is already wrong. The division among them, the kilometres-long lists of demands." He said he is not in favour of replacing Agriculture and Food Minister Kiril Vatev, as demanded by the protesters.

On the Martin "The Notary" Bozhanov case linked to influence trading in the Judiciary, Borissov said that influencing magistrates, judges, and prosecutors and changing identities can be done only by a very powerful system, which should be uncovered and terminated. The recently established ad hoc committee of inquiry into Bozhanov's activity will hold a meeting on Thursday, Borissov added.