REL: The resignation of DUI ministers, only on paper

The resignations of the five ministers of the Democratic Union for Integration remain only on paper, since two days after their submission to the Government, they have not been reviewed by Prime Minister Dimitar Kovacevski.

The head of the Macedonian Government, Kovačevski, according to the executive information service, "from August 3 is on a short annual vacation with his family, abroad."

The Government does not provide any clarification on his position on how he will act with the resignations, whether he will reject them, or whether he will send them to the Assembly of North Macedonia for verification.

The legal provisions that are in force regarding the work of the Government, the Prime Minister and the members of the executive, do not foresee "pending resignations" or "timed resignations", as the DUI ministers have submitted.

However, even if they are submitted, they cannot be reviewed as the deputies are on annual leave, which may last until August 18, the day when the constitutional changes are on the agenda.

These changes were also the trigger for their resignations, as based on the signed letter it is said that they come into effect with the support of the amendment to the Constitution by the opposition party VMRO DPMNE.

Constitutional changes should be made for the inclusion of the Bulgarian minority in its preamble, based on the "French proposal" for resolving disputes with Sofia on the Macedonian language, identity and historical past.

If they are not approved, then Bulgaria can again block North Macedonia's accession talks, as it did in 2020.

VMRO DPMNE has said that it supports the changes on the condition that they enter into force after North Macedonia's membership in the EU and if an expanded government is formed without DUI, which it accuses of corruption and organized crime.

The parties in power, the Social Democratic League and the Democratic Union for Integration, say that "VMRO's conditions have been met and that it must now support the constitutional changes".

However, the chairman of VMRO DPMNE, Hristijan Mickoski, said that the resignations must be irrevocable and that the delay of this process is done to buy time.

"Now they have another battle, to get through August and come September. And, when autumn comes, there is no logic for us to ask for early elections, since there will only be a few more months until the regular elections in the spring".

"But they should be clear about one thing, that there will be no constitutional changes either in August or September. They, in fact, are not interested in them being done either, since their main interest is to postpone this mandate until the end, so that they can steal as much as possible", said Mickoski.

The ruling Social Democratic League (LSDM), meanwhile, continues to accuse the opposition of being "against the European future" and of a "better life for citizens" that, according to this party, can only be achieved with EU integration. Otherwise, SDSM says that the country will be isolated.

"If they really care about the interests of the state and the European agenda, then Mickoski and VMRO DPMNE will support the amendments to the Constitution. All the conditions that Hristijan Mickoski required have been met. Now it's up to him to come out and clearly show that he supports the country's integration or isolation", said SDSM deputy, Nenad Kociq.

Even the Albanian opposition parties, Lévizja Besa, Alternativa and Lévizja Demokratike, called the resignations of DUI ministers "tactics for political points". According to them, the resignations were made to distract the public's attention from the numerous accusations against DUI officials for involvement in corruption and organized crime, among which is its chairman, Ali Ahmeti./rel