Theoretically, it is possible to replace the acting Prosecutor General Borislav Sarafov, but it is much more likely that attempts will be made in the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) through procedural maneuvers or in another way to thwart the proposal of the acting Minister of Justice.
This was stated to News.bg by Neli Kutzkova - former chairwoman of the Union of Judges and former member of the Supreme Judicial Council regarding the decision of the acting Minister of Justice Andrey Yankulov to convene an extraordinary plenum of the Supreme Judicial Council with a single point the replacement of the acting Prosecutor General Borislav Sarafov.
According to Judge Kutzkova, "the prosecutor's office is becoming hostage to one person who is in the office of the prosecutor general". "It is high time for fellow prosecutors to stand up, because because of one person they bear the disgrace without being guilty", she commented.
According to her, when it comes to prosecutors, they are in a centralized system and recently voices of ordinary prosecutors have been heard expressing disagreement with the policy of Borislav Sarafov in the state prosecution.
"There is even a call from the Union of Judges in Bulgaria to fellow prosecutors - that they finally come out to express their position on what is happening in the prosecutor's office. Nobody cares what kind of prosecutor's office there is in the country," Judge Kutzkova believes.
She pointed out that there is a crisis in the country and institutional distrust in law enforcement agencies, which we have witnessed in recent days.
"This affects the entire country, but it is not only the judicial system that contributes to this crisis. I continue to focus on the "Sarafov" case, although his replacement is not a panacea. Things will not change with the replacement of one person, but with many people who are not indifferent to them, to start performing their functions and not allowing unregulated pressure to influence their work," Judge Kutzkova emphasized.
She added that if the members of the SJC cannot propose a new i. f. chief prosecutor, then the acting minister of justice will be able to do it.
"The Supreme Judicial Council can make a proposal, with the main role of the prosecutorial college. In the coming days, we will be able to assess the extent to which the prosecutorial college has influence and the extent to which its members are independent in replacing the acting Prosecutor General and electing a new one," commented Judge Kutzkova.
According to her, it is entirely possible for the SJC to abdicate from the process of replacing Borislav Sarafov as acting Prosecutor General.
"Everything depends on these forces that are not visible to society and that obviously influence the judicial system and in particular the prosecutor's office," Judge Kutzkova also said.
She also stated that in order to replace the SJC and elect a new one, we will have to wait for the new parliament, and the government's hands are largely tied at this time. "A constitutional majority of 160 people is needed for a new election of members of the Supreme Judicial Council," said Judge Kutzkova, who hopes for such a majority in the next parliament.