The decision of the National Council of the right-wing opposition Union of Democratic Forces (UDF) of Tuesday to run together with the Democrats for Strong Bulgaria (DSB) in the general elections is one of the most commented topics in the Wednesday dailies.

Dnevnik Daily

"Dnevnik" frontpages the news under a headline, "UDF, DSB Establish Right-wing Coalition" and says the two will run together in the general elections as well as in the elections for Bulgarian MEPs. The report says that after four hours of heated deliberations, the UDF leadership approved a draft agreement with the DSB which is also open to other rightist parties.

24 Chasa Daily

"24 Chasa" reports that the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF, of the ruling coalition) has agreed to coalescing with the National Movement for Surge and Stability (NMSS) in a liberal coalition for the MEPs election. The daily says that MRF leader Ahmed Dogan has extended an invitation to this end to NMSS leader Simeon Saxe-Coburg Gotha during an informal dinner between the leaders of the three-party ruling coalition. "24 Chassa" too reports on the decision the UDF to run together with the DSB in the general elections. The daily quotes UDF leader Martin Dimitrov as saying after the proposal was put to the vote that this is a huge gesture on the part of UDF. "People split the UDF and made mistakes but we swallow this in the name of the democratic governance," Dimitrov said. DSB leader Ivan Kostov is a former head of UDF.

Social analyst Miroslava Radeva comments in "24 Chasa" that the current crisis will result in a wrath-driven vote. According to her, everything will depend on election campaigning. Radeva quotes data of MBMD polls showing that at the moment 16 per cent of Bulgarians will vote for the Bulgarian Socialist Party and 26 per cent for GERB. Radeva says that whom people vote for will also be determined by the economic crisis, the heavier its impact, the greater the  radicalization of society.

"Fireman or Mayor" rads the headline of an analysis in "24 Chasa" saying that the time has come when Sofia Mayor Boiko Borissov needs to show whether he is a politician, mayor of fireman. Borissov, who has a degree in fire fighting, is the informal leader of the GERB party. The author says that a fireman is someone who saves a situation in a her-like manner which Borissov can do "at world level". The politician on the other hand considers developments and offers people and adequate political strategy which the mayor translates in a successful action plan. The author says that the current problem with the Sofia waste is Borissov's last chance to become a true politician.

Trud Daily

Deputy Environment and Waters Minister Lyubka Kachakova denies in "Trud" allegations that the NMSS leader, Simeon Saxe-Coburg Gotha, is tired. Kachakova says that his creed for more tolerance, preserving of values, espousing pragmatism and thus working more and talking less is not something that would tire a person such as himself . Kachakova says that in its election campaign NMSS should rely on the party's strong economic team, the programme for economic survival in the global recession and also on its administrative personnel built in the past eight years.

Social analyst Kolyo Kolev writes in "Trud" that there is a great thirst not for things political but for things magical. According to Kolev, a new political formation will stand a chance if headed by a prominent and charismatic person, someone having a halo of might, competence and power and who at the same time emits purity and probity. Kolev says it is difficult to see where such a person will come from except importing him/her from abroad.

In a front-page report "Trud" discusses the price war on the cigarette market, saying that it is escalating. Rivals of the state-run Bulgartabac Holding are even cutting prices of their brands in order to keep their foothold on the market, "Troud" quotes Bulgartabac Holding CEO Ivan Bilarev as saying. The topic is also commented in other newspapers.

Senior Research Associate Kapka Stoyanova of the Institute of Economy with the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences tells "Trud" that women in Bulgaria are better educated but get smaller pay than men. Stoyanova says further that men do two hours less non-paid labour than women per day while 90 per cent of the house work is done by women. She urges for recognizing such labour as productive not only bu society but also by the state bodies as is the practice in many other countries. Stoyanova is adamant that this work too contributes to the Gross Domestic Product and the national wealth. The expert says that management positions are usually taken up by men and when women hold such posts, their get less than men. According to Stoyanova, solving this problem of gender inequality rests with the Labour and Social Policy Ministry.

Many dailies, among them "Trud", run excerpts from the interview of Prime Minister Sergei Stanishev to Euronews. Stanishev was asked about the gas crisis, the suspended EU funding to Bulgaria, the fight against corruption, among other questions.

Stanishev told Euronews that Bulgaria has an action plan in a new gas dispute between Russia and Ukraine. Regarding the suspended EU funding, the PM said that the experts and the politicians are realizing the efforts which have been made by the Bulgarian government authorities. Bulgaria is doing its best in the area of structural reforms, making personnel changes, and creating new rules, Stanishev said. He also noted that the incumbent government has proven its political will to fight corruption and organized crime.

Klassa Daily

Executive Director of BBSS Gallup International Kuncho Stoichev tells "Klassa" that voter turnout at the elections for MEPs is expected at 40 per cent, and at the general elections, 50 per cent. Stoichev says there will be two interesting questions at the elections, whether GERB or BSP will be the party that wins the greatest amount of seats and what will happen with the smaller parties.

Sega Daily

Sofia's waste problem continues to receive much attention in the press. "Sega" writes that the waste-collection and street-cleaning company in Sofia went on an indefinite strike. Contrary to expectations not to provide legal opportunities to the Sofia City Hall to have its waste-collection and street-cleaning services concession contract terminated, the Novera company refused to clean the city with the explanation that its workers were striking. The daily recalls that the same happened last summer when four boroughs of Sofia remained under heaps of garbage. Then, as well as now, the case reached the State Agency for National Security (SANS) which has to investigate it. However, in the present situation there are no guarantees that waste-collection and street-cleaning services will be resumed so that Sofia could get an easy opportunity to dissolve the contract without the danger of paying millions of leva in compensations, "Sega" writes.

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