Full delegitimization of power

Zdravko Saveski

The government could not have made a bigger fool of itself than it did with the series of moves at the end of last year. Amnesty, ganging up with the construction mafia, more privileges for themselves, more strikes against poverty! All the things we have seen. With these procedures, the government lost the remaining remnants of its legitimacy. The only ones left to defend the government are the party soldiers, with or without membership cards, officials and “experts” who have personal benefit from it. It has become crystal clear to everyone else that they are ready to do anything to stay in power, to drain as much money as possible for themselves, and to enjoy the privileges given by the authorities. This is a completely unscrupulous, unprincipled, non-encroaching power that, with its last moves, has made its full delegitimization in the eyes of the citizens. The pro-government poltnons in their desperate attempts to save at least part of the reputation of power are trying to push the thesis that the expectations of the current government were too great and that’s why the citizens are disappointed. No, on the contrary. People did not expect milk and honey, they did not expect some great improvement in the standard of living. They were expecting and demanding only to end the governing practices characteristic of the previous government, restore democracy and the rule of law, stop the employment of party soldiers, stop spying likes and statuses on social networks. And those who committed crimes to return the money and end up behind bars. Are these expectations great? This is the most basic minimum required of any government in a somewhat democratic country! Are these requirements that the current government can not deliver? Why? Because the requirements are “too great” or because it lacks the will to do it? The highest number of votes in the 2016 elections was won by SDSM in order to solve the crimes of Gruevski and his clique. How confident they were that they would act like that! And now? Amnesty! They were rreconciling, they forgave them! Just so they could push the constitutional changes and to allow its foreign sponsor by completing Macedonia in NATO to fulfill its geostrategic plans! It’s been known from the very start. They will not allow any legal norm to stand in their way! They are ready to do any political diligence in order to fulfill their task! And… it is exactly what they did!

Mukoski, Kanceska, Mijalkov, Gruevski! None of them will end up in prison! None of them will return the money! You who protested for days, you thought that Zaev deserved trust, you who voted for them to see that justice is served – now the government is flipping you the finger! You’re done! You voted for them. It was enough for them. The next time you go to the polls, vote once again for the “lesser of two evils”, and once again ignore the lesson that when one chooses the lesser of two evils, still chooses – evil!

What subjection to the judiciary has been done! In the worst days of Gruevski, we did not witness such an open placement of the prosecution and the judiciary in the service of the executive power! Whatever the government needs, prosecutors and judges deliver! Independence of the judiciary? What was that? What seems most repulsive is seeing how the Special Public Prosecutor’s Office dances to the government’s tune. It is most repulsive because it was formed to end the crimes of the power, because they are paid huge salaries (for nothing), because people protested to defend the SPO at the risk of personal consequences for themselves. And now? The SPO is flipping them the middle finger as well! We are paid big money, we do not care that the government is controlling us!

And what about the violation of the Criminal Code? They mitigate sentences in order to save perpetrators from their criminal acts, so that MPs would vote for constitutional changes. In doing so, they establish lenient penalties for abusive tenders, try to alleviate the punishment for abuse of office in any way. Is it allowed to shape the law to the needs of specific individuals in a country that loves to claim it is a democratic one? Is the mitigation of penalties for abuse of tenders and official duty, SDSM, not ease the work on their own cases of abuse of power? Therefore, actually killing two rabbits with one stone?

With the construction mafia and with the one connected to Mijalkov – they sold state-owned property. And not just any! State-owned land to the City shopping mall in Skopje, which Gruevski was eyeing, but did not have the courage or time to sell. For skyscrapers to sprout out of nowhere, ruining the city even more, making the situation with pollution even worse! But why? For bosses to make extra profits, and give politicians some of it! The Ministry of Transport and Communications did not have the legal possibility for not selling this state-owned land. This is their excuse. Well, why didn’t you change the law when it is at the expense of the public interest? You have been in power for a year and a half. You have had quite enough time to do it. You didn’t do this because of lack of political will and even just because of ignorance or negligence? If that is so, then the Minister of Transport and Communications is obliged to resign!

And what about the additional privileges that the rulers have granted to themselves, or are they in the process of doing so? Unbelievable! MPs wanted guaranteed employment after the end of their term. The public reacted too aggressively, so they might give up the intention (for the time being). Travel costs were not abolished. The L-apanage was not abolished. But, however they will introduce deputy directors of public enterprises for an additional number of party soldiers for high salaries! And what’s worst of all: they have increased the salaries of deputy prime ministers!

Were their salaries to low so it was necessary to increase them? They worked well, so they deserved it? Hazbi Lika did not show up to work for months. The rest of us mortals get fired for not showing up to work for three days without a proper excuse. And what he got was – a higher salary. Oliver Spasovski has the highest salary in the government. The crime in the country has doubled, Gruevski escaped, but he does not think about resigning. Because he was considering raising his salary! They eat and drink on the state’s account, travel on the state’s account, talk on mobile phones on the state’s account, take high salaries, and – wept because of the small limitation of their salaries carried out by Levica through a complaint to the Constitutional Court.

What a slap in the face is that for the poor citizens who are struggling to make ends meet each month! While the government was plotting a strategy for raising the salaries of its deputy prime ministers, at the same time it found that it was disputable for pensioners, social workers, redundant workers and freelancers to make ends meet  by selling goods on food stands. For the government there is nothing disputable about the fact that its party pensioners earn additional income in the management boards. It is not disputable that even the same persons can be members of multiple management boards and thus make additional income. It is disputable that poor pensioners earn some money in an honest way, certainly in an amount lower than the increase in salaries of deputy prime ministers!

All this is utterly rude! And the rulers know it. But they act shamelessly, because they know that the rules of the game have changed. If they fulfill the task through the constitutional changes to enable Macedonia to join NATO, it will no longer matter whether or not the people are supporting you. What will be more important is getting the support of the imperial master. As long as you get it, you can rule no matter how dissatisfied the citizens are. Macedonia is not on its way to becoming a European country. It is on its way to become a semi-independent Asian-African country, where someone else, from the outside, gets to say who will rule and drain the people.