site.btaUPDATED Borissov Calls Zhelyazkov’s Resignation Statement “Brilliant”, Says Government Has Nothing to Be Ashamed Of

Commenting on Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov’s statement, who earlier on Thursday announced that the government was resigning, GERB-UDF Floor Leader and GERB Chair Boyko Borissov said that Zhelyazkov’s remarks were “brilliant”. “We have nothing to be ashamed of over these past 11 months,” Borissov added, speaking at a briefing at GERB headquarters in Sofia, attended by Deputy Prime Minister Tomislav Donchev, Parliament Chair Raya Nazaryan, as well as ministers and GERB-UDF MPs.

The government’s resignation came as Parliament was about to vote a no-confidence motion against the government submitted by Continue the Change - Democratic Bulgaria (CC-DB). In the wider picture, the country is swept by massive anti-government protests that were triggered by the cabinet's controversial budget plans but escalated into discontent against the government over corruption, injustice and failure in many government sectors.

“The King and Parvanov took us into the EU and NATO, and history later erased their parties. GERB brought the country into Schengen and the eurozone, and to make sure we are not erased, I insisted on this resignation today,” Borissov said. He was referring to Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, King of Bulgaria from 1943 to 1946 and Prime Minister from 2001 to 2005, and former president Georgi Parvanov, 2002–2012.

“The resignation has been submitted, it is the first item on Parliament’s agenda tomorrow,” Borissov said, stressing that there would be no cabinet reshuffle and no post-election coalitions or patchwork majorities. “After today, we will be a strong opposition; we will work to win the elections,” the leader of GERB said.

“I do not see a single mistake in the important things we accomplished,” he added. According to Borissov, the government successfully advanced the Recovery and Resilience Plan, requested a convergence report for the eurozone, and supported defines investments, among other achievements. He also noted that Bulgaria had been under monitoring for 27 years, a mechanism that was lifted under Rosen Zhelyazkov’s government.