site.btaWith Such Anger, No Government with Any Common Sense Would Insist on Staying in Power,” CC-DB Deputy Floor Leader Bozhanov Says

Commenting on the large-scale protests in Sofia and in major regional centres across Bulgaria against the adoption of the 2026 State Budget Bill, Continue the Change – Democratic Bulgaria (CC-DB) Deputy Floor Leader Bozhidar Bozhanov told Bulgarian National Radio that “with such public anger, no government with even a little common sense would insist on staying in power”.

“Tonight’s protest (ed. Monday) in Sofia and in many cities across the country was peaceful, massive, and tens of thousands strong. It voiced its anger toward those in power unmistakably, regardless of the attempts to discredit it. And yet the media spent the whole evening broadcasting and commenting on the actions of a handful of provocateurs instead of this powerful protest,” Bozhanov said late Monday night.

He argued that “the initiative for the provocations came from the government, most likely from Movement for Rights and Freedoms – New Beginning Chair and Floor Leader Delyan Peevski himself, because the police response was inadequate”.

“I tried to find police officers when I saw a small group of provocateurs – there were none in the area. We called the Interior Minister to tell him that there were absolutely no police near the Vasil Levski Monument. Then the police simply allowed the provocateurs to run riot so that Peevski could later ‘make a statement’ on Facebook,” Bozhanov said, adding that the entire episode was staged and facilitated by the Interior Ministry.

“Protesters marching from the Largo down Tsar Osvoboditel Blvd. turned toward the Levski Monument – and there were no police present. Then the group of provocateurs arrived. Power was cut in the opposite direction along the boulevard, and entire neighbourhoods were left without electricity. It appears the planned provocations were meant to happen in the dark. It was a staged scenario. At the Largo, too, there were very few police, mainly around the Council of Ministers, and there were no provocations at all,” he recounted.

According to Bozhanov, the provocation will not discourage people – “it will only make them angrier”.

“First, the budget needs to be withdrawn, and Interior Minister Daniel Mitov must resign, something already demanded by Ivaylo Mirchev and Assen Vassilev,” he said. “People in the square in Sofia, and across the country – in Plovdiv, Varna, Burgas, and elsewhere, were shouting for resignations. With this level of public anger, no government with even minimal common sense would insist on remaining in power.”

“By Wednesday, the next plenary sitting of the National Assembly, the budget must be withdrawn. It is harmful because of the influence of Peevski, who wants to take from it for himself and control the security services that protect his damaging regime,” Bozhanov added.

Earlier on Monday night, CC-DB MP Ivaylo Mirchev said that Interior Minister Daniel Mitov must resign immediately. The reason, he said, was the inadequate police response during the protest. CC Chair Assen Vassilev voiced the same position.