Mickoski’s offer no longer stands

Erol Rizaov

Hristijan Mickoski, the leader of VMRO DPMNE, is nowhere to be found, and then suddenly he reappears with a sensational statement like in Lila Filipovska’s TV show. He said that the offer he gave to Prime Minister Zoran Zaev is no longer valid. Zaev opened and spent all the boxes with the main prizes and there are no more chances left. Now it’s Mickoski’s turn to open the boxes. He goes for all or nothing. Bravo, very brave. Mickoski’s offer to Zaev is very stingy, just like Lila’s banker: “We don’t have to enter the government to share the government with you, we just want to help you and jointly manage to bring Macedonia closer to getting a date by October. It’s been several weeks now, and there’s still no answer. This offer is not without an expiration date, it starts to expire”.
And another thing, you want to arrest me for helping you.
When I heard this on TV Alfa I became anxious, what are we going to do now, poor us. We will be left without a date for accession negotiations with the EU if VMRO-DPMNE and Mickoski don’t step back. And can you imagine, generous Mickoski asked to help Zaev without any compensation and, of course, help Macedonia, but because there was no answer, he decided to withdraw his offer. So now North Macedonia will remain North, but without a date for accession negotiations.
What can we do in such a tragic and hopeless situation? Nothing, but beg Mickoski as if he is our savior, to be pious and save Macedonia, to grant Zaev a few more days so he could change his mind. He easily changes his mind if we direct one fierce criticism towards him over his rejection of Mickoski’s salvation solution. I hear that even the President of France Emanuel Macron personally, through his prime minister, sent a request to both Mickoski and Zaev to accept his offer that does not differ from their at all. He says, as soon as you both agree, the negotiations can begin on that very same day. In that case, it is highly unlikely it will ever happen.
All jokes aside, Hristijan Mickoski, really does have that power and strength not only postpone negotiations with the EU indefinitely, but also to annul the harmful agreements with Greece and Bulgaria, to restore the country’s constitutional name and bring back from political persecution the undisputed president of VMRO-DPMNE and the most successful prime minister in the recent history of Macedonia, Nikola Gruevski. It is enough for the opposition to leave Parliament due to the fearful political calculation of the government by the opponents and the persecution it has against VMRO-DPMNE members and the patriots, so that it is a strong argument, because of the political instability of the state, to postpone negotiations with the EU, while the government and the opposition do not convey the political struggle in the Parliament. When the Parliament in a country that has been a EU candidate for 15 years does not work, accession talks are simply not possible.
Hristijan Mickoski has even greater power and a crucial role Macedonia not only to terminate, but also to start negotiations with the EU by the end of the year. He needs to make only a few small moves though he’s late, but it’s never too late. The offer for this is still valid. First, he should loudly and clearly distance himself from that international crook that escaped to Budapest, and he even dares to preach what and who needs to work in the country. Both he and his party need to accept judicial justice and the rule of law for all citizens, and equally give the green light for the smooth operation of the Special and Regular Public Prosecutor’s Office. The reform of the justice system must be passed unanimously in Parliament for the smooth functioning of the judiciary. Any obstruction of justice from a position of power and authority should be severely sanctioned by several years of prison sentence. Establishing public confidence in the administration of justice is a key obligation leading to negotiations with Europe. This job cannot be done by one political party, even if it had a two-thirds majority in the Parliament.
Rule of law is an essential segment of democracy. Outside of democracy, the principle of the rule of law is a bare form and can be easily transformed into an instrument of coercion, repression and dictatorship as we were witnesses and sufferers for a time period of 11 years during the regime of Nikola Gruevski.
The basic function of the rule of law is the restriction of political power and the provision of effective protection of man and his freedoms and rights for which Mickoski and the party leader of VMRO-DPMNE now speak so loudly with outcries that are perceived humorously because of the fact that they are now seeking what was their main tool during decades of uncontrolled governing. Getting your back hit once with a stick hurts more than a hundred hits on someone else’s back.
This does not mean that despite releasing the state from these chains, despite the institutional mechanism that in practice there are still no serious weaknesses in the application of the rule of law. All political parties and responsible politicians must commit to taking the most vigorous measures against the present weaknesses and the calculation of organized crime and corruption whose suppression is the most important preconditions for starting accession negotiations with the EU. Hristijan Mickoski with the offer to help get a date for negotiations does not have these proposals.
Mickoski does not even have the proposal for population census. On the contrary, the VMRO-DPMNE leadership calls out for boycotting the census as if it were a political statement, and not a legal obligation to finally conduct a census according to all European standards. The background of this multi-year postponement is a dangerous interethnic message for counting the infamous 20 percent of Albanians. Whether they are, or are not in the country, which would open the process of depriving acquired rights which directly leads to serious political and economic destabilization, an inevitable situation when the acquired rights are taken away. VMRO-DPMNE still favors the strategy that the party has best results when there are inter-ethnic conflicts. The sooner they delete this weapon from this doctrine, the better for the party and for the future of the country. There is also a lot of truth in the fact that the fear of counting of population comes from the fear of revealing the election frauds of Gruevski and VMRO-DPMNE.
The consistent implementation of the Prespa Agreement and the policy of good neighborly relations, removing criminals from the party, the rule of law and the smooth functioning of the entire justice system, the non-selective fight against organized crime and corruption, consent to impeccable professional and expert census, are the bids to be delivered by both the government and the opposition, so that the accession negotiations with the EU can begin in due time. If North Macedonia moves along that path, no matter now many obstructions and obstacles there are from the outside, they will be overcome.
Now the big question is whether anyone can believe that Mickoski and VMRO-DPMNE are really ready to help and jointly participate in achieving strategic interests for the future of citizens and the country. From what we have seen in the past two years after the fall of the regime of Gruevski, there is no such readiness. On the contrary, all activities go in the direction of obstruction to achieve these goals. This does not diminish the responsibility of the government and Prime Minister Zoran Zaev and other coalition partners to finish the job for which they are trusted. Of course, it’s a much harder road, but there is not much else to do. The way out is for the majority of the public to recognize the truth that leads in progress and in Europe. The other option is fatal.