site.btaMedia Review: May 20

The topic of lifting the six-day blockade on Sofia's surface public transport, which resumed operation on Monday evening, dominates Tuesday’s media. The Confederation of Independent Trade Unions in Bulgaria (CITUB) – the organization representing the striking public transport workers, said on Monday that they are lifting the blockade after the government allocated BGN 15 million to Sofia Municipality to resolve the ongoing crisis in Bulgaria’s capital.

UNIONS LIFT BLOCKADE ON SOFIA’S SURFACE PUBLIC TRANSPORT

Segabg.com’s frontpage article reads that surface public transport in Sofia resumed operations after six days of disruption. The breakthrough came following the intervention of GERB party leader Boyko Borissov, who, in an unofficial capacity, instructed the government to provide the funds needed to meet the workers’ financial demands. Just days earlier, Finance Minister Temenuzhka Petkova had insisted that no such money was available.

Starting April 1, salaries for Sofia’s public transport employees will be increased by BGN 300, the news outlet says.

Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov’s cabinet made the decision amid a large demonstration in support of Sofia Mayor Vassil Terziev and efforts to ensure that 12th-grade students in the capital could reach their schools for upcoming matriculation exams on Wednesday and Friday, despite the transport disruption, Segabg.com’s article further reads.

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In an interview with Bulgarian National Radio (BNR) following the resolution, CITUB's Transport Unions Federation President Alexander Shopov said: “We are now taking down the barricades everywhere. We heard the decision from the Municipal Council that our demands will be met with the funds that have already been secured. Starting tomorrow [Tuesday] morning, all public transport in Sofia will operate according to its pre-strike schedule. The BGN 15 million provided by the state confirms that the salary increase can take effect from April 1. In September–October, we’ll begin talks with political parties and ministries to explore further funding opportunities in next year’s state budget.”

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In Nova TV’s morning talk show, CITUB Vice President Todor Kapitanov said the unionists will demand an additional BGN 500 increase on the base salary in 2026 and another BGN 600 over the already raised wages in 2027. The BoulevardBulgaria online news outlet recalls that, currently, the base salary of public transport drivers in Sofia is BGN 2,105, excluding social benefits, years-of-service bonuses, among other incentives. Overtime is paid at nearly double the standard hourly rate.

Kapitanov also told Nova TV that even with the promised BGN 300 increase by the end of 2025, it will not be enough to attract more young drivers for Sofia’s bus and electric transport, as the pay does not match the workload and responsibilities. He also acknowledged that none of the additional demands of the strikers – for improved working conditions and better scheduling – have been achieved.

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In a Facebook post quoted by Dnevnik.bg, Simeon Stavrev, a municipal councillor from Continue the Change – Democratic Bulgaria, sharply criticized the government's handling of the public transport strike in Sofia. Petrov questioned why the state did not provide funding earlier, implying that the delay may have been intentional: “I still don’t understand why the government did not allocate the money a week ago – unless the goal was to paralyze Sofia for six days.” He specifically called out Finance Minister Temenuzhka Petkova, who repeatedly claimed there were no funds available and that Sofia Mayor Vassil Terziev had to find a solution on his own. “Now Boyko Borissov boasts that because of him and GERB the issue is being resolved. No – it’s being worsened,” Stavrev argued. In his words, the increase of BGN 300 for each of the roughly 7,000 employees in the city’s four transport companies will create a shortfall of BGN 69.5 million in the capital’s 2025 transport budget. “Populism from the New Beginning coalition has solved nothing,” Stavrev said, accusing GERB and its allies of manufacturing a crisis only to theatrically present a solution. “The classic playbook – create a problem, then swoop in as the saviour – has become clear to everyone,” he concluded.

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Speaking to BNR, Boris Bonev, municipal councillor from the Save Sofia group, criticized the way the recent public transport crisis in the capital has been handled, warning that those who helped create the problem are now presenting themselves as its saviours. Bonev highlighted the conflict of interest posed by three municipal councillors – one from GERB and two from BSP for Bulgaria – who also serve as union leaders in the transport sector. “You cannot demand blanket wage increases when 90% of the staff shortages are among drivers, tram operators, and service technicians, not administrative personnel,” he said. He argued that the recently allocated BGN 15 million by the Ministry of Finance – which just days earlier had ruled out any possibilities for additional support – offers only a temporary fix. “This patch only covers the current year, and even that is uncertain. What happens next year? The only lasting solution is actual reform,” Bonev stressed.

“All of Sofia knows the protest was politically motivated,” he emphasized, accusing protest leaders of staging a “cheap theatrical performance”. Taking aim at GERB leader Boyko Borissov, Bonev added, “I will not sit on a stool next to Borissov – I’m the one who will kick it”.

Bonev was adamant that reforms must accompany any funding. He proposed merging the four municipal transport companies to reduce administrative overhead and urged the creation of a long-term investment plan to improve public transport. “Has anyone asked passengers if they want a more reliable, comfortable service?” he asked. He also called for professional standards among staff: “Drivers should stop smoking in the cabs, stop talking on the phone, be polite to passengers, and wear uniforms.”

He also criticized Mayor Vassil Terziev’s strategy during the negotiations: “The Municipal Council is the principal owner of the transport companies – its absence from the talks was unacceptable. The companies' leadership should have also participated. This was not the right strategy. Yes, the mayor gained visibility, his voice was heard, but in such crises, one must actively seek institutional support.”

Despite the criticism, Bonev reaffirmed Save Sofia’s support for Mayor Terziev and urged citizens to stand by him: “We support the mayor and call on people to push back against renewed attempts to capture Sofia Municipality”.

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Commenting on the situation on Bulgaria ON AIR’s morning talk show, the head of the transport committee of the Sofia Municipal Council, Ivan Takov of BSP for Bulgaria, said that Sofia Mayor Terziev is humiliating the Municipality, because the funds were already available in its budget. “Today, public transport is running. Since it became clear that the people who are supposed to solve this problem cannot do so, I looked for all possible alternatives. Public transport had to be operational in order not to create additional tension. I and my colleagues managed to ensure that,” said Takov. According to him, the accumulated problems in public transport will not be solved with either BGN 15 million or even BGN 30 million from the government to cover salaries. “A normal process requires concessions from both sides. Last year, nearly BGN 300 million from the capital investment programme remained unused. The economic framework should be viewed together with the budget,” Takov argued.

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In a BNR interview, political scientist Milen Zhelev characterized the recent protest by Sofia’s surface public transport workers as a “failed tram coup”. According to Zhelev, the crisis has merely been postponed by a few months and warned that new disruptions are looming – this time potentially involving waste collection services in the capital. He referred to the ongoing tensions with two waste management companies responsible for servicing about a third of Sofia. These companies had initially threatened to suspend operations on May 19, citing outstanding payments from the municipality. They later postponed their strike action, but the dispute remains unresolved.

“There will be enough money for salaries for a few months, after which we’ll find ourselves back in the same situation – only this time during the heating season, with far more serious consequences,” Zhelev warned. He argued that the unions had capitalized on a legitimate protest and did not rule out political motivations behind the strike. “The goal may have been to turn public sentiment against the mayor, making citizens click their tongues and blame him for the chaos,” he suggested. According to Zhelev, now is the moment for Mayor Vassil Terziev to “bang his fist on the table and pursue bold reforms.” “His position is shaky. It’s uncertain whether he’ll serve out his full term,” he added.

Zhelev concluded that the biggest winners from the standoff are the unions, which he claimed include figures with political affiliations. “Public opinion was beginning to turn against the strikers, but no one benefits from inciting conflict. The people of Sofia realized they were being played,” he said.

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In its Tuesday frontpage, the 24 Chasa daily casts a critical light on the blanket wage increase resulting from the strike. The headline emphasizes the lack of differentiation in the salary boost: “Both the Director and the Janitor Benefited from the Strike”.

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The Trud tabloid daily publishes an analysis on the topic, titled “Terrorists from Public Transport Have Been Served”. According to Trud, the so-called “terrorists from Sofia’s public transport” demanded nearly BGN 200 million in order to lift the blockade in the capital. Two million Sofia residents were taken hostage, the paper writes. Ultimately, despite the principle that “you don’t negotiate with terrorists”, they prevailed, and the state ended up paying BGN 15 million to restore normal life in the city, Trud says.

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Bulgarian National Television and Capital.bg also cover the lifting the six-day blockade on Sofia's surface public transport thoroughly.

BULGARIAN MEP NIKOLA MINCHEV INVESTIGATED BY BELGIAN AUTHORITIES

Quoting Politico, bTV reveals that the Belgian authorities have asked the European Parliament to lift the immunity of five MEPs so they can be investigated for alleged involvement in illegal lobbying by Chinese tech company Huawei. The request, confirmed by four EU officials, comes two months after the allegations surfaced. According to two of the officials, the five MEPs involved include three from the centre-right European People’s Party (EPP), one from the Socialists, and one from the centrist Renew Europe group. Although the full list of names has not yet been confirmed by the European Parliament, Maltese Socialist MEP Daniel Attard and Bulgarian Renew Europe MEP Nikola Minchev have publicly acknowledged that they are under investigation.

In an interview with bTV, Nikola Minchev commented on the case: “The Belgian prosecuting magistracy wants to investigate because back in October [2024], we attended an Anderlecht–Ludogorets football match, which I was invited to by my then assistant. His friend had invited him, and it later turned out that this friend was a central figure linked to Huawei,” Minchev explained.
“I haven’t done anything for Huawei – no legislative initiatives, no events, no letters,” Minchev said, adding that no formal charges have been brought against him and that he has not worked with his assistant for about two months.

Parliament President Roberta Metsola is expected to announce the full list of MEPs involved during the opening of the plenary session on Wednesday, bTV added.

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The topic is also covered by Nova TV, Dnevnik.bg, Mediapool.bg, BoulevardBulgaria, among other media.

HEALTHCARE

All media cover the latest data on mortality and life expectancy in Bulgaria, provided by the Institute for Population and Human Studies with the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, which shows that mortality in Bulgaria is the highest in Europe, and child mortality is 1.5 times higher than the average for Europe. In 2023 and 2024, the crude mortality rate in Bulgaria was 15.7 per mil and 15.6 per mil, respectively, the data shows. The number of deaths in 2024 was 100,736. Although compared to 2018 (16.2 per mil) the mortality rate has decreased slightly, it remains the highest in Europe, where the average crude mortality rate was 10.8 per mil in 2023.

Between 1960 and 2023, life expectancy increased by approximately one year every 10 years and reached 75.8 years. This means that life expectancy has returned to and even slightly surpassed the levels reached before the COVID-19 pandemic. However, life expectancy has increased more slowly compared to other countries in Europe, where it was 81.4 years in 2023.

Infant mortality in Bulgaria in 2024 was the lowest since this indicator is measured – 4.5 per mil, the institute’s data also shows. This decrease is a significant contribution to the extension of life. However, infant mortality was 1.5 times higher than the European average.

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The Telegraph tabloid has a detailed interview on the topic with Magdalena Kostova, head of the Demographic and Social Statistics Directorate at the National Statistical Institute.

TRANSPORT

Trud has published an interview with Transport and Communications Minister Grozdan Karadjov, in which he talks about the measures his institution is planning to address violations in the issuance of driver’s licenses, as well as planned changes to modernize intercity bus transport in Bulgaria, and the railway sector.