Socialist Chief Lashes Out against Bulgaria's Rulers, President over Electoral Law

Sergey Stanishev, head of the opposition Bulgarian Socialist Party and the Party of European Socialists, and ex PM, has slammed Bulgarian President Rosen Plevneliev for being subservient to the Borisov Cabinet and the ruling party GERB.

"President Plevneliev isn't fulfilling her head of state functions; rather, he is acting as a spokesperson of GERB," Stanishev said on Friday as cited by BGNES.

"The President's statement that those political forces questioning the fairness of Bulgaria's upcoming elections are just seeking excuse to lose the elections is scandalous," he added.

Stanishev believes that Plevneliev is indebted to the Bulgarian nation and democracy because he was said to be elected in a suspicious way, apparently referring to BSP's claims of election violations during the 2011 presidential elections.

"Right now there is no more important topic for the Bulgarian citizens than election legislation because it deals with the fundamental right to vote without pressure, and the right to count the ballots fairly," he said.

He said GERB's attempt in December 2012 to "sneak" amendments into the Electoral Code curbing the rights of independent observers and NGOs is unprecedented, as is their desire to control the vote casting and vote counting.

Stanishev further added that all other parties in the Bulgarian Parliament – with the exception of GERB – have risen up against the Electoral Code changes, which were not adopted.

"With these changes GERB are trying to open up a route for manipulation and forging of the election results. We don't wish to help legitimize this outrage that they are planning to implement," the Socialist leader said.

He urged the entire opposition in Bulgaria to come together in order to make sure that the 2013 parliamentary elections will not repeat "the outrages from the presidential and local elections in 2011".

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