The royal parliament is on the street – Analysis

© Presidency

Dnevnik published President Rumen Radev’s speech, delivered today in the National Assembly at the opening of the autumn parliamentary session.

Dear Madam President of the National Assembly:

Dear Madam Vice President,

Distinguished Members of Parliament,

Ladies and gentlemen, members of the media:

Dear compatriots,

Ladies and gentlemen, flight will not save you from misfortune.

By doing so, it shows that the true parliament is outside. Of course, I am not at all excited to be in the National Assembly in this situation, but both you and I, the Bulgarian citizens have chosen us to represent them and solve their problems and at least listen to each other. I will not comment on this outing, but it is actually indicative of the lack of dialogue and why people are on the streets today.

First of all, I would like to congratulate you on the new room and wish you to witness the right decisions in favor of the Bulgarian people.

I am writing to you, the deputies, because in the deep moral and institutional crisis, in the growing distance between citizens and the government, the National Assembly is the institution that must show responsibility in its decisions for civil peace and the future of Bulgaria .

Remember that exactly one year ago from this rostrum I addressed the people and the National Assembly. I described the situation in the country and the problems that are destroying our society:

rampant corruption, inefficient governance, concentration of power and public resources in a small circle of people –

leading to a deepening of poverty, inequality and demographic crisis, the decline of education and health, the collapse of institutions.

I pointed out ways to address them, aimed at strengthening citizen participation and control over governance, strengthening the rule of law, strengthening parliamentary control over the executive, more transparency and accountability in the work of institutions, strengthening direct democracy, introduce financial decentralization, improve the business environment. I called on parliament, as the central body of state power, to take action to achieve these important goals for our society.

I made it clear that “the time for change is inexorably running out, while young and healthy Bulgarians are running out, while Bulgarian peoples and Bulgarian retirees are leaving one after another. I called on parliament to focus its efforts on important decisions for the future of the country., I suppose I warned that if that did not happen

“Either apathy will continue to empty Bulgaria, or the street will sweep away the status quo.”

These words of mine were ignored, I suppose in the hope that all problems would sink into apathy. But today the street, full of indignation and concern for the future of Bulgaria, came to resign.

If the National Assembly had exercised stronger and more complete control over the executive branch, now there would be no wasted billions, fat oligarchs, lockers full of money, and streets full of angry people.

If the National Assembly had listened to the calls and vetoes for the non-admission of lobbying legislation, it would not now be with such reduced confidence and it would have influenced social processes in a much more constructive way.

There is something even more frustrating than the loss of confidence, and it is the loss of dignity,

because Parliament allowed itself to become an unconditional executor of the Prime Minister’s will. No one in this room dared to ask a single question in the Attorney General’s report.

After 2 months of relentless protests in the country, the unprecedented consolidation of our compatriots abroad, the severe discrediting of Bulgaria in the world media, I believe that everything has been said and the diagnosis of such a government has finally been made.

I hope that the Bulgarian Parliament does not assume the role of the Prime Minister’s servants, that it does not change the public agenda, what society wants today, that it does not stain parliamentarism with illiterate exercises for a new Constitution and the Grand National Assembly, which They are intended for the sole purpose of saving today’s government. This only prolongs the agony and fuels the anger of the people.

It was not the lack of a new Constitution and a Grand National Assembly that brought the people to the streets, but the lack of morale in the government, undermining the foundations of statehood and corruption.

The Bulgarians have clearly stated their will and their demands for immediate resignations.

what is heard outside today and people continue to come en masse, resignations from the government and the Attorney General, fair elections and new confidence.

These resignations are inevitable because people have come out of the hypnosis of propaganda, have overcome fear and insist on their right to live in a normal state, a desire incompatible with the current government.

And when these resignations become a fact, I ask you to prevent any attempt by the status quo to deceive the expectations of the citizenry and to materialize behind an expert cabinet that will be nothing more than a puppet of the current government. This will be the only way for this National Assembly to come out of this crisis situation with dignity.

The Bulgarian Parliament is the highest institution in the country and should be the most respected,

which depends on whether the people’s deputies will make their decisions, mainly taking into account the will of their voters. And if you don’t want to listen to me, you should at least listen to your voters, who are out today, and not vote for an expert and any other government in the mandate of this National Assembly. However, it does not vote for the proposed changes in the electoral law, because they are an unacceptable retreat from the democratic gains of the Bulgarians over the years.

If we claim to be a democracy, we cannot solve political problems with police methods, we cannot risk escalating tensions. Political problems are solved through political means, and when trust is finally lost, it becomes clear what the means are: resignation, of course.

Yes, I agree, there must be

debates – both for changes in the constitution and for the transformation of our country into a country with the rule of law,

real separation of powers, effective, responsible and transparent institutions that work effectively in the interest of citizens, not individuals, parties, oligarchic circles. There must also be a debate on the fundamental conditions necessary, without which there is no security for the individual, the property and the company. Conditions without which there is no European income and quality of infrastructure and public services.

However, these future debates and decisions must be directed and taken by the next National Assembly and the government with the necessary confidence. The thousands of people out there today are proof that a great deal of public energy for change has been built up, that a strong civil society has been born in Bulgaria, that will seek solutions for a true European future for Bulgaria, that will require morality in the political and will be intransigent with any government. dared to convey the public interest.

I want to address the protesters and the police with the utmost responsibility from this rostrum to prevent violence and not succumb to provocations, because at this critical time for Bulgaria we cannot allow the just demands of the people to be corrupted. At this historic moment, the Bulgarian Parliament should live up to public expectations and

to prevent the country from falling into chaos, riots and anarchy.

As an expression of the will of the people, I ask you to follow the will and demands of the Bulgarians for the immediate and unconditional resignation of the government. We have no other way out of the State blockade than the normal and peaceful political act of resignation in case of loss of confidence.

Thanks for your attention!

I wish you good luck!