Power is not at any price, cause is what is worth at any price, outgoing prime minister Kiril Petkov said in an interview for bTV Saturday evening. Commenting on the work of his government, Petkov said it had been “very good”, particularly as it had operated in the conditions of an unprecedented crisis.
In the past week, Continue the Change did their best to garner the parliamentary majority in support of a new government with the party’s mandate, Petkov said. He also underscored they would not have allowed any next government with the participation of GERB, (former power-sharing) There Is Such a People (TISP) or the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) because of the people who signify them, meaning Boyko Borissov, Slavi Trifonov and Delyan Peevski.
Petkov does not see how Borissov could be a partner for a change in the judicial system and anticorruption policy. He believes the people will see Bulgaria cannot change for the better with these particular parties.
Inflation in Bulgaria is imported and there is inflation in the entire EU, Petkov said, speaking of governance in the economy. He recalled that some BGN 4.0 billion had been provided in support of business to curb electricity prices and respectively related goods, which was the government’s first very important policy.
Incomes, particularly of those worst hit, were the second one, Petkov said, quoting near-minimal pensions raised by nearly 55% since last year at a 15% inflation. This meant that for those worst hit by the crisis incomes outpaced inflation. Also, the economy marked a 4% growth in the first quarter of governance, which remained unnoticed.
Taking a question whether Bulgaria would have natural gas and at what price, Petkov recalled that the Greece-Bulgaria interconnector was marked as completed on Friday. This costs Bulgaria BGN 500 million, provides diversification and the gas that will begin flowing is three times cheaper than Gazprom’s, he said, comparing it to the BGN 3.0 billion TurkStream which did not. He termed an as unprecedented success the fact that the interconnector was completed in six months and two ships of liquefied natural gas at 30% lower the current market price had been provided.
Gas in the winter there will be, Petkov assured, regardless of who will govern the state.
