President Rumen Radev made a mistake by initiating the referendum on the euro, but this is his mistake. This was stated by the former Secretary for Legal Affairs of the Head of State, as well as former Minister of Justice Krum Zarkov, to the Bulgarian National Radio, quoted by news.bg.
According to Zarkov, such a referendum will not take place because it is constitutionally inadmissible, because there is a huge majority in the National Assembly, which has swelled. From now on, all actions will not have legal consequences, but political ones, in his words.
He pointed out that the strategic debate that President Radev is talking about will not take place and added that in Bulgaria as a whole, there is no debate on absolutely anything - and this is the big problem of our democracy. A debate in Bulgaria cannot take place on any issue, because we have become accustomed to political forces delegitimizing every opponent, commented Krum Zarkov.
Radev's former legal secretary believes that those who see Russia's interference in everything are no different from those who see the interference of the "embassy" in everything and explained: "Replace the "embassy" with Brussels, with other mythical beings, with communists, with fascists. Our democracy suffers. Political parties essentially replace the debate with "for" and "against" the great evil conspirator who from somewhere has planned to get us in or out of somewhere. This leads to the demotion of the debate to one between agitators."
According to Krum Zarkov, some people are doing everything possible to always have the main agenda be east-west, in order to replace the key issue of corruption with that of our geopolitical positioning.
Zarkov also commented on the decision of the Speaker of the National Assembly Natalia Kiselova to return the request for a referendum on the euro to Radev, pointing out that Kiselova had no right to do what she did, but we must be aware that she is a speaker elected by the fifth political force. Her decision was undoubtedly influenced by the parties that comprise the current majority - GERB-SDF, BSP, ITN, MRF-NN, in his words.
He added that these parties tried to hide behind Kiselova's back, but this was not necessary, because it would have ended up in the Constitutional Court anyway.
Zarkov did not doubt the "sincerity of the Constitutional Court" and believes that the president's referral to the Constitutional Court "will not lead to much", because "even if the Constitutional Court returns the issue to the National Assembly, there are 171 people waiting there to reject it". However, the former secretary for legal affairs of the president believes that "political effects will be created, which I am not sure are intended by the president. There will be an attempt to build up tension, to take this tension to the streets, to declare a revolution".
And he explained that the political actor who would benefit from such tension is the one who can gain legitimacy, which in principle he cannot gain.
Zarkov is of the opinion that the current government is increasingly resembling a patchwork and explained that we have a prime minister "who in himself gives the characteristics of a moderate and balanced person, but is pressured by the real political leaders who are not in the government, but are in front of the parliament elevator and who are looking for a legitimate move to occupy a place that they think is their right. And it is a place "with a shoulder strap", it is not an informal leader. It is a place that says "prime minister", "deputy prime minister" or something else", according to him.
He predicts that this "government will waver between stabilization when it talks about Europe and crises when it talks about the judicial system".
Raising the topic of corruption is a bet for our future, Zarkov is categorical. He pointed out that it seems that we will enter the eurozone with all our problems. "The Eurozone may have economic and financial positives and negatives, but our political, social problems, our sense of community, our capacity to raise national issues will require additional effort to build a modern state that is governed by rules, not mafia-like", he pointed out.
"All our major problems that make us be in the EU, but not feel European, remain on the table not only unresolved, but also uninteresting", Zarkov further commented and added that everyone will have problems, but not Boyko Borisov and Delyan Peevski, because they remain "guardians of Euro-Atlanticism - they remain positions that they have not budged from and that they feel confident in. With the formation of this government, parties outside GERB were doomed to marginalization from this participation".
Krum Zarkov raised the question of how an alternative can be built from now on, as long as this government is limited by its own contradictions, and believes that Rumen Radev is a politician with great potential. He specified that he is leaving his post as legal secretary to the head of state "with respect to President Radev and the institution" and with gratitude for what they have managed to do together, but will remain politically active.
Although he is still a member of the Bulgarian Socialist Party, Zarkov stated that the party has embarked on the path of marginalization and with his participation in the "Zhelyazkov" cabinet, he does not think that it can get out of the party crisis.