Minority Turks rule Bulgaria

Delyan Peevski, probably the most controversial Bulgarian MP has been elected to lead Bulgaria’s National Security Agency, DANS.

The Parliament voted Friday to approve the nomination of Prime Minister, Plamen Oresharski, who proposed to have Peevski, Member of the Parliament from the liberal ethnic Turkish party Movement for Rights and Freedoms (DPS) to lead DANS.

In a move, stunning both MPs from the opposition center-right Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria party, GERB, of former Prime Minister, Boyko Borisov, and parliamentary reporters, Oresharski proposed at the beginning of the sitting to have a new item on the agenda – election of new DANS Director.

The request caused outraged GERB MPs to leave plenary hall.

Oresharski then proceeded to nominate Peevski.

“A difficult situation calls for non-standard decisions. The PM’s nomination is one such decision and some will see it as controversial, but it is needed,” the leader of the left-wing Bulgarian Socialist Party, BSP, said.

He was the only one to make a statement on the nomination from the parliamentary tribune.

During the first vote 114 MPs voted for Peevski’s nomination, 10 against, and 1 abstained. The far-right, nationalist Ataka voted against.

After hearing that the vote was taking place, GERB MPs came back running in plenary hall and asked for a second vote.

204 MPs took part in the second vote – 116 voted for, all GERB MPs (87) – voted against. Only 1 BSP MP abstained.

With the vote of BSP and DPS, Peevski became the new DANS Head.

He already took the oath of office as well.

Peevski recently became one of the most active MPs, after being tightlipped and frequently absent during the previous General Assembly.

Speaking in the parliamentary hallway, Borisov said this was the end of the Bulgarian Socialist Party.

The news already caused uproar in Bulgaria. Citizens are uniting on Facebook to stage a protest rally Friday evening.