Rosen Plevneliev
| Rosen Plevneliev | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 5th President of Bulgaria | |
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 22 January 2012 | |
| Prime Minister | Boyko Borisov Marin Raykov (Acting) Plamen Oresharski |
| Vice President | Margarita Popova |
| Preceded by | Georgi Parvanov |
| Minister of Regional Development and Public Works | |
| In office 27 July 2009 – 9 September 2011 | |
| Prime Minister | Boyko Borisov |
| Preceded by | Asen Gagauzov |
| Succeeded by | Lilyana Pavlova |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Rosen Asenov Plevleniev 14 May 1964 Gotse Delchev, Bulgaria |
| Political party | Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria (Before 2012) Independent (2012–present) |
| Spouse(s) | Yuliyana Plevnelieva |
| Children | Filip Asen Pavel |
| Alma mater | Technical University of Sofia |
Rosen Asenov Plevneliev (Bulgarian: Росен Асенов Плевнелиев; born 14 May 1964) has been President of Bulgaria since January 2012. He was the Minister of Regional Development and Public Works from July 2009 to September 2011 as part of the cabinet of Boyko Borisov.[1] In October 2011, Plevneliev was elected as President in a second round of voting; he was inaugurated on 18 January 2012.[2]
Biography
Rosen Plevneliev was born in Gotse Delchev. He is descended from Bulgarian refugees from southern Macedonia who resettled from today's village of Petrousa in the municipality of Prosotsani in Drama regional unit, Greek Macedonia, in 1913. The Plevneliev family name refers to the Bulgarian name of the village, Plevnya (Плевня, "barn").[3]
Plevneliev studied at Blagoevgrad Mathematical and Natural Sciences High School, from which he graduated in 1982. In 1989 he graduated from the Higher Mechanical-Electrotechnical Institute, Sofia, and in the same year become a fellow at the Institute for Microprocessing Technology, Pravets. In 1990 he started a private building company in Bulgaria. Among other projects, the company built the Sofia Business Park.
He is married to Yuliyana Plevnelieva and they have three sons: Filip, Asen and Pavel.[4]
Political career
Plevneliev became Minister of Regional Development and Public Works under Prime Minister Borisov on 27 July 2009.
He was announced as GERB's candidate for President of Bulgaria on 4 September 2011.[5] He subsequently won the presidential election in a second round held on 30 October 2011, with a majority of 52,58% of the vote.[6] He defeated Ivaylo Kalfin from the Bulgarian Socialist Party in the second round. He took the presidential oath on 19 January 2012 and officially took over from his predecessor Georgi Parvanov on 22 January 2012. Among his priorities are administrative reforms, energy efficiency and energy independence and removing of ambassadors of Bulgaria in foreign countries who have served as secret agents during the Communist regime.
As a result of the 2013 Bulgarian protests against monopoly and high electricity prices, the conservative government of Prime Minister Boyko Borisov tendered its resignation on 20 February 2013. President Plevneliev, acting in accordance with the constitution, offered a mandate to form a new government within the term of the current Parliament to GERB, BSP and DPS but after each of them declined, Plevneliev appointed a caretaker government on 13 March 2013, with Marin Raykov, the Bulgarian ambassador in Paris as Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs.
In 2013, due to the prolonged protests against the involvement of oligarchy in politics and the government, Plevneliev organised the 'Dialogue with citizens' initiative, which involved three debates, focused on market economy, the judicial system and media freedom.
Plevneliev advocates for closer relations between Bulgaria and the People's Republic of China.[7][8]
Plevneliev criticises constantly and sharply the policy towards immigrants in the UK by its Prime Minister, David Cameron.[9]
Controversies
In January 2014 it became known that the tax authorities are inspecting Plevneliev and his relatives. The topic generated some controversy, as some people say that any citizen can become an object of a tax inspection, while others point to what they perceive as too many tax inspections of critics of the Oresharski Government.[10]
References
- ↑ "Biography of Rosen Plevneliev (Bulgarian)". dir.bg. Retrieved 2011-12-02.
- ↑ "Plevneliev Sworn In as President of Bulgaria". novinite.com. Retrieved 2012-01-19.
- ↑ "Росен Плевналиев в „Нека говорят“ с Росен Петров, bTV, 6.11.2011 г." (in Bulgarian). bTV. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
- ↑ "Rosen Plevneliev (Bulgarian)". 24 Chasa newspaper. Retrieved 2011-12-02.
- ↑ Bulgaria's GERB puts up popular minister for president, TrustLaw, 4 September 2011
- ↑ Bulgaria: Plevneliev is Bulgaria's New President, noinvite.com, 30. October 2011
- ↑ "Bulgarian President-elect courts China". Novinite. 23 November 2011. Retrieved 8 October 2012.
- ↑ "China, Bulgaria pledge to deepen cooperation". Xinhua News Agency. 12 September 2012. Retrieved 8 October 2012.
- ↑ Politicians are judged by what they do and not by what they say
- ↑ The Presisdent Douts the Impartiality of Tax Inspections
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Rosen Plevneliev. |
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Asen Gagauzov |
Minister of Regional Development and Public Works 2009–2011 |
Succeeded by Lilyana Pavlova |
| Preceded by Georgi Parvanov |
President of Bulgaria 2012–present |
Incumbent |
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