"It is not even necessary to have such a bill for the members of the SJC to realize that they have neither the legal nor the moral right to choose the next chief prosecutor, given that their mandates have long since expired".
This is what the former Acting Minister of Internal Affairs, Ivan Demerdzhiev, told the BNR.
"Such a body with a long-expired mandate must realize that it can and must perform the minimum necessary actions to maintain the sphere of government in which it participates - in the case of the judiciary, but it has neither the legal nor the moral right to elect a chief prosecutor who will manage the Bulgarian prosecutor's office in the next 7 years", he commented. And added:
"It becomes clear and we all understand how important this is for Peevski - to have a new chief prosecutor and that he be elected again somehow under his control.
"He theatrics clumsily, actually criticizing people who largely fall short of what he wants them to do, but not entirely. He wants to be in complete control. He obviously wants the people standing across from him to not be able to say "No" on no matter. And to practically get all the power in the state - this is obviously his goal. And anyone who does not meet these requirements, regardless of the fact that he has done many things for a long time in the line drawn by Peevski, becomes inconvenient for him, becomes an obstacle", explained Demerdzhiev in an interview for the program "Nedelya 150".
According to him, now, by order from outside, the SJC has started a new procedure for the election of the chief prosecutor. But:
"If we are going to elect someone like Geshev or Sarafov again, I think that this leads to a vicious circle and will in no way lead to the delivery of justice and predictable justice, which the Bulgarian citizens expect. This has become a nightmare for the citizens".
In his words, it is the place for all other parties and their leaders to categorically oppose this, and for the institutions to realize their responsibility, maintain their authority and not succumb to influence.
There are many criticisms of our law enforcement system, which are well-founded, according to the former interior minister. According to him, if she doesn't wake up, open her eyes and give the justice that society needs, it can cause even greater tension and even greater tremors in the country.
"It is high time for the law enforcement system to step on its feet and take the functions into its own hands," he categorically states.
Demerdzhiev is adamant that the parties and their leaders must clearly distinguish themselves from the "Peevski" model. They must understand that Bulgaria's way forward lies in giving Bulgarian citizens security and justice, he added.
According to him, it is crucially important for the Ministry of Internal Affairs to maintain neutrality and work actively against the bought vote. The former interior minister believes that there should be changes quickly, because in a number of areas a serious distortion of the vote can be seen. If measures are not taken there and changes are not made to counteract these phenomena, they will be repeated, which will show that Peevski's influence in the Ministry of Internal Affairs remains even after the replacement of Kalin Stoyanov, explained Ivan Demerdzhiev.
He announced that current vote-buying schemes provide for payment after the elections, which makes it difficult for the Ministry of Internal Affairs. According to him, however, the officials know how to counteract this, but they must have political support and freedom.