The Bulgarian Prime Minister recognizes to be at the head of a “complicated” coalition but is resolutely on the side of the European Union and NATO.
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KIRIL PETKOV, 41, was appointed Prime Minister of Bulgaria on December 13, after winning the legislative surprise on November 14, with his anti-corruption party, we continue change. This entrepreneur, who grew up in Canada and was trained in Harvard, claims firmly pro-European in this country that remains the poorest of the Union.
Your main election promise is to fight against the Endemic corruption in Bulgaria. How are you going to take it?
During the campaign, the slogan of our party was even “zero tolerance for corruption”. Not a simple decrease or better control: zero tolerance! There will be no exceptions for anyone who uses public resources for his own benefit. The first step will be to create a very strong anti-corruption agency, which will have investigative powers and may intervene if legal proceedings do not begin. This subject will also become an absolute priority of the Ministry of the Interior. For its part, Parliament has established an anti-corruption commission that will be able to address ministries and governments. At the same time, we carry ourselves towards the idea of changing the superior council of the judiciary and, potentially, the Attorney General.
But he refuses to resign and you do not have a two-thirds majority. Necessary to force it from …
If we have an anti-corruption agency that really works, we will be able to catch a few corrupted people on the floor side, put more pressure for change and have them resign. I understand the separation of powers and the independence of the judicial system, we know that we are limited by the constitutional framework and by the rule of law, but we will do all that is in our power by remaining in this context.
Are you ready to change the mentality of the many Bulgarians who accommodate corruption?
If we can not eradicate corruption within four years, there is absolutely no interest in being here. I do not think corruption money accelerates projects, as we sometimes say. All countries that have been able to eradicate them have higher GDP per capita. Fighting corruption helps to ensure socio-economic development, attract investment and get a better brand image for the country.
Your country shows the lowest vaccination rate of L European Union (EU). What do you intend to do?
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