Vanya Grigorova's departure is a surprise for us. This was stated by the chairman of the Local Coalition "BSP for Bulgaria" group in the SOS Ivan Takov on the occasion of her decision to become an independent municipal councilor. And he added that he sincerely hopes that she doesn't forget about her commitments to the people.
"In our common Manifesto for a Democratic City from the 2023 local election campaign, we said very clearly that our first concern is for the people, commented Ivan Takov. That's why we don't concentrate and aren't that interested in the private cases of individual managers in municipal commercial companies. Our group works closely with the trade union structures, and that is why I personally committed myself extremely to solving the problem related to the 6-day transport crisis in the city".
Ivan Takov, who is also the Chairman of the Standing Committee on Transport and Road Safety, recalled that together with Vanya Grigorova they have fought many battles over the past two years. "We went through many challenges, we ran an extremely strong campaign in 2023, and then in the Sofia Municipal Council we defended our commitments to the people of Sofia, he commented. - We continued together even after she left the coalition last year and ran independently with another party in the early parliamentary elections. We did it because for us, working for the good of the people and our city comes first. And we have made very serious commitments to them".
The Chairman of the BSP - Sofia noted that the Socialist group in the SOS has a very clear position on the topic of municipal transport companies. "We have always defended them, as they have an extremely social function for the people and for the city. This is a basic belief of the BSP. Citizens come first for us and this is not subject to comment, said Ivan Takov. - I hope that Vanya Grigorova - even as an independent municipal councilor - will continue to uphold this common commitment of ours, which we made together two years ago. As for Prof. Bratoev - he was elected by the SOS as a member of the Board of Directors of the municipal company "Metropolitan" EAD. From now on, the SOS has no authority to make decisions about who will be the Chairman of the Board of Directors and who - the Executive Director. This is decided by the members of the Board of Directors themselves.
Ivan Takov also noted that for a year and a half now, the Local Coalition group "BSP for Bulgaria" has been seeking and providing support for every reasonable report from all political parties in the SOS. "Vanya Grigorova not only participated in all of this, but we have also fought more than one battle together, including for improving working conditions in healthcare facilities, as well as in auto and electric transport and for increasing the salaries of those working in them, he recalled. - Many of all the reports I am talking about, including the night transport, which was her personal proposal, were also supported by GERB. I don't understand something - is she now distancing herself from this support?! All this time, the BSP has supported every reasonable report in the SOS that is good for the city and its people. And we will continue to do so. I see absolutely nothing abnormal in this. On the contrary - for the first time in so many years, the BSP has the opportunity to fight back and fulfill its election commitments. We have been doing it since the beginning of this mandate in the Sofia Municipal Council, we also did it in the consolidated budget of the Sofia Municipality for 2025, in which for the first time over 90 BSP proposals found a place in the capital program. This budget also included funds for increasing the salaries of those working in the Sofia public transport and municipal healthcare, as well as for improving working conditions. Therefore, I do not see anything abnormal in seeking and receiving support from every political force in the Sofia Municipal Council.