Money for pensioners or for Ukraine?

On the eve of the parliamentary elections on April 19, the Bulgarian Federation of Pensioners' Unions and Organizations (BFPSO) is asking a fundamental question - money for pensioners or for Ukraine? The federation announced in a letter to the media that they are ready to support those political forces that publicly and categorically announce in the National Assembly that they will vote against the participation of the Republic of Bulgaria in the European military loan intended for Ukraine in the amount of 90 billion euros.

„This loan has already been politically agreed at the European Union level, with only Hungary stating that it will not participate in it. Bulgaria's participation in such a loan means committing about 1.5 billion euros from the state budget - funds that will heavily burden the country's financial system. There is a serious risk that the loan will not be repaid by Kiev, which will turn the commitment into a long-term burden for Bulgarian taxpayers. For the country with the lowest standard of living and lowest pensions in the European Union, which also has the highest mortality rate, such a financial burden will have a strong negative impact on the sustainability of the pension system. This threatens its stabilization and future increase in pensioners' incomes“, they write in their letter.

According to the association, Bulgarian pensioners cannot and should not bear the cost of foreign policy decisions that do not take into account the real socio-economic situation of the country. “We call on all political forces to clearly state their position on this issue and to take responsibility before Bulgarian citizens“, the federation adds.