First Deputy PM and Minister of Political System Artan Grubi sparked controversy after he did not bow before the memorial plaque of police officers that died in the armed conflict in 2001, during a ceremony for observation of the 40th anniversary of the Tiger police unit. In a statement given on Sunday, Grubi said that he sees no problem in not bowing before the plaque, and added that if he intended to disrespect the memory of the late police officers, he would not have appeared at the event at all. Grubi was also subjected to criticism from former NLA fighters too, who said that by attending the event, he disrespected the fight for rights of the Albanians living in Macedonia and the memory of the fallen NLA fighters. Similar criticism for Grubi also came from the Alliance for Albanians.