(ANSA-AFP) - SOFIA, 21 LUG - Bulgaria's third-term Prime
Minister Boyko Borisov survived a no-confidence motion in
parliament on Tuesday as anti-corruption protests pushing for
his ouster have taken to the streets for almost two weeks. The
motion tabled by the opposition Socialists "for an infinite
series of corruption scandals" gathered only 102 votes, well
short of the necessary majority of 121 votes in the 240-seat
parliament. The 61-year-old veteran conservative premier was
widely expected to survive the motion, but his troubles may not
end here. For thirteen days in a row his cabinet has faced
street demonstrations gathering thousands of mostly young people
rallying against its perceived favouritism of powerful
behind-the-scenes oligarchs. Bulgaria is the EU's poorest member
and also ranked as the union's most corruption-prone by
Transparency International. In a bid to appease people's anger
and meet their calls for change, Borisov made three key
ministers -- of finance, economy and the interior -- declare
their willingness to resign last week. However, he postponed a
cabinet reshuffle for after the no-confidence vote, promising
even more sweeping changes. Despite the protests, Borisov has
vowed to complete his third four-year term in office, which ends
in March 2021. The government coalition council, made up of
Borisov's GERB party and his two small nationalist partners, is
expected to meet this week to discuss a way out of the current
political crisis, senior member Valeri Simeonov told public BNT
television. (ANSA-AFP).
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