Counter-spin: What do you mean “Todor Aleksandrov” won’t meddle in Mickoski’s affairs?!

Although he stated that he won’t meddle in the work of the new party leadership, Nikola Gruevski, who identified himself with Todor Aleksandrov in his valedictory speech, still sent ten messages to Hristijan Mickoski. But the “Todor Aleksandrov” epistles to Mickoski are in flagranti interfering, which makes it clear that Gruevski made a spin

Author: Teofil Blazhevski

During his speech delivered at the 16^th party Congress in Valandovo, the Honorary president of VMRO-DPMNE, Nikola Gruevski, made a spin by saying that he won’t meddle in the work of the new party leadership and the new leader Hristijan Mickoski:

Spin: …Apart from some new policies, every new leadership brings new people as well. That should be understood and supported. I’m going to respect that, and I’m going to try my best not to meddle in or obstruct the new leadership’s work. I don’t want to do things that I didn’t want to be done to me….

[Source: Integral text of Nikola Gruevski’s speech…, date: 23 December 2017]

Counter-spin:

In his valedictory marathon 70-minute speech, Gruevski managed to somehow confirm all the speculations that he has personally selected the new party president and that he intends to be the party’s shadow leader in the future.

Gruevski’s spin, although masked as “messages to the new leader”, is even more conspicuous and weighty because it comes after the part in which Gruevski identifiying himself with Todor Aleksandrov and finishes with the statement that VMRO’s autonomous policies ended after Aleksandrov’s death.

With his death and Vancho Mihajlov’s leadership, it is estimated that the period when VMRO made independent decisions about its actions had ended…

After this brief history lesson, Gruevski says:

Ladies and gentlemen,

Let me send several messages to the candidate for VMRO-DPMNE’s president:

And then, he sends not one, not two but exactly 10 messages. All of them, except the first one, in which he regrets that there has been only one candidate, are actually recommendations on Mickoski’s future work.

For instance, in the second recommendation, he reminds Mickoski not to even think of changing the party’s name, because “he’s candidate for president of the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization – Democratic Party for Macedonian National Unity. That’s a great honor, but a great responsibility as well. At the same time, Gruevski gives recommendations on how he should act concerning the name dispute: It is expected from VMRO to safeguard Macedonia’s back regarding the name negotiations.

In the recommendation number 3 for example, Gruevski set Mickocki’s main target, as well as the deadline for achieving it:

„…the members expect him to win the next general elections and to regain power in Macedonia. That’s the main target: victory at the general elections and formation of a new government led by VMRO-DPMNE.“

In the next one, no. 4, Gruevski dictates party’s strategic orientation to Mickoski as well as the manner of resolving issues related to the EU and USA – through dialogue. But, in the following one, he yet again points out to Aleksandrov and the independent decision-making too, and suggests to Mickoski that party decisions should be made independently, because VMRO-DPMNE has been and still is the sole major party that has been making decisions that way.

After the first five recommendations, Gruevski tells Mickoski that he will devote all of his energy not to interfere.

However, in the seventh recommendation, Gruevski again mentions the relations with the international community. The eighth is related to the development of party’s policy regarding the Albanians in Macedonia.

In the ninth, probably the crucial recommendation, Gruevski mentioned the results of the last municipal elections and the reasons for the defeat, underlining that VMRO-DPMNE has been victim of treason and intrusion of a magnitude that hasn’t been witnessed in the last 15 years, so he tells Mickoski to “chop off heads” in the party:

As soon as possible he should undertake energetic measures for punishing and removing the persons who haven’t acted accordingly… All facts and information ought to be checked well, so somebody won’t suffer by mistake, but afterwards the purge has to be done decisively and without hesitation. Also, the demotivated and relaxed members in the leading party positions ought to be replaced by motivated members

At last, in the tenth recommendation, the new leader is told how to position himself regarding the detainees for the events from 27 April that took place in the Parliament of the Republic of Macedonia and who are under investigation for terrorism and conspiracy for violent overthrow of the constitutional system, and that the new party leader has to demand amnesty for those persons and events decidedly, due to the fact that a law on amnesty has already been drafted. All of that because VMRO-DPMNE has been attacked:

VMRO-DPMNE has been attacked. It must fight for its own protection, and for the protection of every member who is unjustifiably and tendentiously accused and is under political persecution, regardless if it’s a matter of an ordinary member or a functionary. The new president ought to know that if he does not fight for his members and activists when they are under attack due to their party and national struggle, the others will be afraid to act and the party will be weakened…

These 10 “todoraleksandrov-esque” epistles to Hristijan Mickoski are just the last one out of the plethora of spins made by Nikola Gruevski, most of which have been covered by Truthmeter. Therefore, we assess his commitment that he won’t meddle, also stated in one of the ten messages to the new leader, as a spin, because he de facto interferes with his speech.

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