RESIGNATION
Bulgaria's vice-prime minister for demography and economy, Valeri Simeonov, stood down and returned to his seat of member of parliament in mid-November after more than a month of protests. The leader of the National Front for the Salvation of Bulgaria, one of three nationalist parties backing the GERB-led government caused a public outrage after calling mothers of children with disabilities marching for a fairer Disability Act "shrill women" using "their supposedly ill children" for their own gain. Mariana Nikolova, chief of staff of Mr Simeonov and a long-time civil servant, took over his job.
MILITARY
In the last days of November the government allocated 200 million levs (100 million euro) for the maintenance of Bulgaria's aging fleet of Soviet-made MiG-29 fighter jets and Su-25 ground attack airplanes. According to the transcript of the cabinet meeting, the money will come from the 371 million levs (185 million euro) budget for an armed forces upgrade for 2018 that was supposed to finance three major modernization projects of the Bulgarian armed forces, including the purchase of new fighter jets, navy vessels and armoured vehicles. All of the aforementioned projects have made little progress in the past year.
PROSECUTION
On 8 November Prosecutor General Sotir Tsatsarov announced he had asked the country's parliament to lift the immunity of six MPs, five from opposition Bulgarian Socialist Party and Volya ("Will") party and one from the ruling GERB. The three Volya MPs, including party leader and businessman Veselin Mareshki, face charges of extortion, while the ex-journalist, BSP member and staunch critic of PM Borissov Elena Yoncheva is suspected of laundering money from the now defunct Corpbank.
RESIGNATION
Bulgaria's vice-prime minister for demography and economy, Valeri Simeonov, stood down and returned to his seat of member of parliament in mid-November after more than a month of protests. The leader of the National Front for the Salvation of Bulgaria, one of three nationalist parties backing the GERB-led government caused a public outrage after calling mothers of children with disabilities marching for a fairer Disability Act "shrill women" using "their supposedly ill children" for their own gain. Mariana Nikolova, chief of staff of Mr Simeonov and a long-time civil servant, took over his job.
