Balgarianovinite.com Interior Ministry data should be trusted over Border Police data in the dispute over alleged joint flights by MRF Chair Delyan Peevski and Constitutional Court Judge Desislava Atanasova, Yes, Bulgaria Co-chair Bozhidar Bozhanov said on Nova TV on Saturday.
Bozhanov said Minister of Interior Ivan Demerdzhiev’s report was based on data from the General Directorate Combating Organized Crime (GDCOC), while former Interior Minister Emil Dechev’s came from Border Police. Bozhanov said it should first be established where the discrepancy came from, which registers were checked and whether any of them had been manipulated.
“A Constitutional Court judge flew with a person sanctioned under Magnitsky. All the trips were high-value and had to be declared by both of them. Neither Peevski nor Atanasova declared them, and that may amount to a criminal offence,” Bozhanov said.
“We voted for Atanasova’s election, and this is no secret or something we can hide, but it was a mistake and we acknowledged it in a public declaration,” Bozhanov added. “The discussion at the time followed two lines, whether she had the required experience and integrity. Purely formally, the criteria were met, but our job as politicians is to make an assessment beyond the formal requirements, and that assessment was wrong,” Bozhanov said.
Asked about criticism of the government’s budget, Bozhanov said they would propose the missing reforms, aimed at permanently reducing expenditure rather than simply “cutting” some temporary spending.
Asked whether they would support GERB’s intention to refer the matter to the Constitutional Court over an excessive deficit, Bozhanov said this had not been discussed. “I understand the argument that it contradicts the Public Finance Act, but that is not a constitutional text, and constitutional law experts should assess whether there are grounds for this criticism,” Bozhanov said. Parliament has often adopted laws that contradict a principle in another law, and there is a Constitutional Court reference saying that this is not a problem, Bozhanov added.
Regarding the upcoming presidential elections and a possible candidacy by Andrey Gyurov, Bozhanov said Gyurov should first say whether he has decided to run, and the party would then make its decisions. “Our assessment of him is strongly positive,” Bozhanov said. He added that Continue the Change (CC) would also back Gyurov’s candidacy, but he did not think the question of GERB supporting him was on the table.
On Prime Minister Rumen Radev’s intention to enter reservations on sanctions against Russia, Bozhanov said this was a decision of the executive branch and there was little scope for parliamentary action.
On July 3, 2026, Atanasova denied that she had travelled with Peevski from Sofia to Dubai on April 5, 2024, saying she flew on scheduled Turkish Airlines flights between Sofia and Istanbul and remained in Turkiye. Demerdzhiev later corrected his statement before Parliament, saying the anti-organized crime report he had relied on contained an incorrect date. Yes, Bulgaria Co-chair Bozhanov Says Interior Ministry Data More Credible in Flight Dispute 2026 THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2026-07-04 09:00:07 Latest news World news Country news Most important news latest news most important latest of the day Justice Petar Nizamov Feathers Petar Nizamov- Feathers Justice bg iustitia.bg iustitia iusticia usticia investigation Burgas Bulgaria news news of the last hour news of the day news of today Bulgaria news The news from Bulgaria blitz news top news most important most commented latest news Boyko Borisov news weather coronavirus news news weather facebook youtube facebook instagram news today news of the last minutes news today today news news bg news leading news hot news bg news site for news all news news bg news of the last hour latest latest news bg news of today news today news today news of the last hour latest news today news bg news news 24 hours news vesti bg novini news world bird bg bivol bg bivol trud bg novini latest news today novinite bg news hello bulgaria political party coat of arms delyan peevski scandalous Bulgarian National Television Free Europe Television scandal exclusive live tv live right now tv tv online tv program bg live now tv news online tv online live court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas district court Burgas appellate court Burgas prosecutor Burgas prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev Prosecutor Geshev Tsatsarov Ministry of Internal Affairs Burgas ODMR Burgas ODPR Burgas police Burgas district police Burgas prosecutor Tsatsarov SGS cases Varna court chairman of the SGS court decisions on civil cases decisions on cases Plovdiv court decision of the court decisions cases Varna court criminal cases district district court decisions work in the court SGS chairman of the SGS judges Sofia court post judges Plovdiv court Plovdiv judges Plovdiv Supreme Court Inspectorate Supreme Court Supreme Judicial Council lawyer lawyer criminal cases lawyer civil cases lawyer marriage cases lawyer administrative criminal law criminal process civil law civil process administrative law constitutional law