On Friday, Interior Minister Pance Toskovski, Deputy Interior Minister Astrit Iseni, 1st Deputy PM Izet Mexhiti, and Deputy PM and Intercommunity Relations Minister Ivan Stoilkovic survived the no-confidence motions filed by the DUI-led European Front against them.
Even though MPs representing the Front alleged again the four politicians had failed to take proper action during the Albanian Flag Day incidents, the ruling majority voted against the motions. On the other hand, Front MP Ilire Dauti, who chairs the Social Policy Committee, didn’t survive the motion filed against her by Levica MPs over her refusal to put the Defenders Draft-Law on the agenda of the body headed by her.
MPs representing Dimitar Apasiev’s party, VMRO-DPMNE, and ZNAM voted in favour of the motion, whereas VLEN parliamentarians didn’t. SDSM didn’t attend the motions session because, as the party had explained before the start, there is no need for new divisions along ethnic lines.
According to DUI, Venko Filipce’s party, however, should say whether its decision to leave the session was the start of the “implementation of the deal” between PM Hristijan Mickoski and ex-PM Zoran Zaev to marginalise ethnic Albanians for an amnesty, mediated by ex-Deputy PM Koco Angjusev. However, SDSM said DUI’s criticism aimed to cover up its deals with VMRO-DPMNE.