Bulgaria: Raids on president's office draw large protests
Demonstrators think the searches of the offices of Bulgarian President Rumen Radev are an effort by the conservative prime minister to protect the country's oligarchy from graft investigations, Deutsche Welle reports.
Heavily armed police raided the offices of Bulgarian President Rumen Radev Thursday, in a move that has exposed political rifts between the president and the country's parliament and oligarchy.
The raids targeted Radev's legal affairs and anti-corruption secretary, along with his security and defense minister. The officials were detained for questioning and their offices searched.
Prosecutors said the raids were part of two separate probes into influence-peddling and disclosure of state secrets.
Protecting the oligarchy?
However, Radev's supporters said the raids targeted the president in order to deliberately delay corruption investigations into Bulgaria's political elite and oligarch class.
Thursday's raids were followed by thousands of people taking to the streets of the capital, Sofia, to denounce the raids and chief prosecutor Ivan Geshev.
In a short speech in front of demonstrators, Radev called for a "purge" of the "mafia" within the government and the prosecutor's office.
Protesters responded with chants of "Geshev is a disgrace!" and "Out with the mafia!"
Geshev said ahead of the protests that the raids were not part of "political games."
"It does not matter if it is the president or the premier, the prosecution acts on the basis of evidence and does not care about political consequences," he said.
Corruption widespread in Bulgaria
Radev, who was elected in 2015 with the backing of the Bulgarian Socialist Party, is a harsh critic of the Cabinet of conservative Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov, accusing him of having "links with the oligarchs."
Last year, Radev tried to block the appointment of chief prosecutor Ivan Geshev amid public outcry that Geshev would do little to tackle widespread, high-level corruption in Bulgaria.
Radev has also pursued constitutional changes on power limits and improved accountability for the chief prosecutor's office.
Bulgaria is ranked as the most corrupt member state in the European Union by governance watchdog Transparency International.
Aram I: Mr. Erdogan, our ancestors were massacred by your ancestors, don't try to oppose diaspora to Armenia
24 April 2024 / 14:20
Azerbaijan and Armenia start border delimitation process
23 April 2024 / 11:38
Armenia premier: Our society asks why we continue to be member state of CSTO?
23 April 2024 / 11:30
Ilham Aliyev on his way to Moscow for talks with Vladimir Putin
22 April 2024 / 10:39
German Foreign Ministry reacts to agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan on border delimitation
22 April 2024 / 10:32
Is Pashinyan going to attend Putin's inauguration?
17 April 2024 / 14:40
Russian peacekeepers’ pulling out from Nagorno-Karabakh has begun, Kremlin confirms
17 April 2024 / 14:34
Tokayev: Kazakhstan ready to offer platform for Armenia-Azerbaijan negotiations
15 April 2024 / 13:37
U.S. refuses to join Israel in retaliatory action against Iran
15 April 2024 / 11:33
Olivier Decottignies: France is providing Armenia military gear everyone’s desperate to get
09 April 2024 / 13:58
Ruben Vardanyan nominated for Nobel Peace Prize
08 April 2024 / 13:48
Serzh Sargsyan says Armenia-EU-US meeting will intensify Russia-West confrontation
05 April 2024 / 14:17
Pashinyan-Blinken-von der Leyen meeting underway in Brussels
05 April 2024 / 14:08
Aliyev expressed to Blinken Baku's dissatisfaction with the US-EU-Armenia trilateral meeting
04 April 2024 / 12:39
Peace process not the focus of Armenia-EU-US meeting – State Dept
02 April 2024 / 14:57