site.btaYes, Bulgaria's Ivaylo Mirchev Urges Delyan Peevski to "Drop Hollow Slogans", Blames Him for Impoverishment of Many People

The co-chair of Yes, Bulgaria, Ivaylo Mirchev, strongly criticized Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) leader Delyan Peevski, calling on him to "drop the hollow slogans” and accusing him of being responsible for the controversial privatization and dismantling of the Bulgartabac tobacco company and the impoverishment of many people.

“Peevski should stop with the empty rhetoric for he is the main culprit for the privatization and looting of Bulgartabac, for the impoverishment of many people, and for the damage done to the state,” said Mirchev in a statement  responding to Peevski’s position against a government program for disposing of state-owned properties that have dropped out of use.

Mirchev emphasized the official position released Wednesday by the Democratic Bulgaria coalition, which advocates for a smaller state footprint in business and the economy. “We have always supported reducing the role of the state in the economy - but this must be done transparently, digitally, with clear traceability, and without allowing certain properties to fall into the hands of ‘insiders’,” he said, adding that the coalition is ready to participate with concrete proposals on how to implement such a program.

He further pointed out that municipal and other authorities must be consulted when evaluating whether certain properties are needed for public purposes. According to Mirchev, the goal of the program should not be to simply "offload assets". “It should not become a means for prime properties, including the Roman amphitheater in Sofia or a desirable plot in Sozopol, to end up in private hands close to those in power,” he warned.