Bulgaria's Prime Minister Boyko Borisov on Wednesday moved to sack his under-fire justice minister to try to end weeks of protests calling for his own resignation. Demonstrators have been blocking roads and staging daily rallies in the capital Sofia and other cities for almost two months, pressing for the resignation of Borisov and chief prosecutor Ivan Geshev over their perceived links with behind-the-scenes oligarchs. "Danail Kirilov tendered his resignation as justice minister after a conversation with Prime Minister Boyko Borisov," the government said in a statement. The reshuffle will be officially approved after talks with Borisov's junior nationalist coalition partners. Kirilov, 50, came under fire as one of the authors of a controversial proposal for a new constitution that was largely criticised by experts and immediately rejected by protesters. The project was specifically slammed for failing to improve the accountability of the chief prosecutor -- an issue long highlighted by Bulgarian and international observers as well as the European Court of Human Rights -- while trying to limit the rights of the president. Borisov has already sacked four ministers in a move to appease the anti-corruption protesters. Parliament is expected to start reviewing the constitution proposal when its autumn session starts on September 2, with debates expected to take months. Analysts have dismissed the proposal as an attempt by Borisov to win time and cling to office until his current third term expires in March 2021. Thirteen years after joining the EU, Bulgaria remains its poorest and most graft-ridden member, according to Transparency International's corruption perception index. ds/jza/txw