Mickoski uses old Transparency International data measuring VMRO-DPMNE ruling period corruption levels

By Владимир Петрески On Dec 19, 2018 0

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Hristijan Mickocki’s speech is incorrect and manipulative, i.e. false according to Truthmeter’s methodology. Not only he lied in public, but Mickoski also floods his members and fans with untruths

In the speech delivered during the third protest of VMRO-DPMNE (12 December 2018) in front of the building of the Government of the Republic of Macedonia for the party members and fans, the party’s president Hristijan Mickoski made the following manipulative and untruthful statement:

They’d say they have been reforming the judiciary. 112^th country according to Transparency International. 112^th country on that list. Tanzania and Ethiopia are ahead of us. They’d say they are taking us to Europe. Not Europe, they brought Africa to Macedonia. Africa is brought to Macedonia. That’s what they have done to the European Macedonia. The current level of corruption in the Republic of Macedonia equals an African Macedonia.

[Source: 24инфо Скопје, date: 12 December 2018 (1:55 – 2:32 in the video)]

EXPLANATION

First things first, this statement discriminates the African continent. By constantly reiterating that “they brought Africa to Macedonia” and how the “European Macedonia” has reached the “level of corruption equal to an African Macedonia”, all African countries are lumped together and stereotyped by Mickoski as if they all are synonyms of corruption. All of that is incorrect, of course. In Africa, as on other continents, there are various countries with different levels of corruption.

More specifically, Botswana, Seychelles, Cabo Verde and Namibia are ranked higher than OECD member states (global club of the richest countries) such as Italy, Greece and Hungary. What’s more, Botswana and Seychelles have better ranks than Spain. And this is not the first time. The history knows of African countries with solid ranks when it comes to corruption. Hence, there is simply no need of discriminating an entire continent and creating false stereotypes about Africa and every country on the continent. Corruption is everywhere. Although there are countries in Africa with systemic and long-standing widespread corruption, that certainly isn’t the case for each and every country there.

Furthermore, it’s unclear where Mickoski has found that Macedonia holds the 112^th position. This is simply incorrect. According to the last and still relevant ranking of Transparency International, Macedonia is ranked 107^th and shares this position with Armenia, Ethiopia and Vietnam. The Philippines are next on the 111^th position, while the 112^th position is shared by 5 countries, none of which is Macedonia: Algeria, Bolivia, El Salvador, the Maldives and Niger.

Now, it’s time to move from the discriminatory segments and dubious incorrectness of the statement to what really matters. Transparency International’s latest ranking doesn’t cover the period of SDSM’s rule. Quite the opposite. This corruption perceptions research covers the period before SDSM assumed office, i.e. covers the period when VMRO-DPMNE was in power.

To wit, the last and still relevant corruption perceptions ranking by Transparency International is published on 21 February 2018 and is named Corruption Perceptions Index 2017. But this means that the measurements have been systematized in 2017. Also, the data in these measurements has been aggregated in the previous two years – but mainly in 2016, which is clearly explained in the Short Methodology Note: The CPI 2017 is calculated using 13 different data sources from 12 different institutions that capture perceptions of corruption within the past two years. Apart from the fact that even if all pieces of data used for the 2017 index would pertain to the same year of 2017, the poor rank of Macedonia on this list cannot be blamed solely on the incumbent government. Instead, in such situation both SDSM and VMRO-DPMNE would be blamed equally because VMRO-DPMNE was in power until 31 May 2017, or 5 out of 12 months.

According to the Corruption Perceptions Index 2017: Full Source Description, most of the data pertains to 2016, while some of it covers 2015 and early 2017 – the period when VMRO-DPMNE was still in power.

All of this points out that the sole culprit for the current poor ranking of this country when it comes to Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index 2017, the 38-position decline in 5 years or the 16-position decline in 2016 only, is the previous government led by VMRO-DPMNE and nobody else. The said arguments also give weight to the fact that this part of Hristijan Mickocki’s speech is incorrect and manipulative, i.e. false according to Truthmeter’s methodology. Not only he lied in public, but Mickoski also floods his members and fans with untruths.

Finally, it’s worth mentioning that one of Transparency International’s donors is New York’s Open Society Foundation (OSF), founded and sponsored by the financier and donor George Soros. It is known that VMRO-DPMNE identifies these foundations with the Satan, they are blamed for all the evil in this country and the world, the party had a several-year-long campaign against OSF in Europe, and even in the US Congress, and spent millions of dollars in order to persuade the American congressmen and senators to believe in the “evil” allegedly done by these foundations. After all of that, we come to a point when all of a sudden sources of an organization sponsored by the Open Society Foundation are quoted (even if the quote is wrong, even if it’s done manipulatively as in this case) as if nothing happened. How come such an organization, sponsored by probably VMRO-DPMNE’s international archnemesis, became legitimate and its findings relevant? And how does VMRO-DPMNE and especially its leader Hristijan Mickoski hope such hypocrisy will go unnoticed?

Assessed by: Vladimir Petreski

SOURCES:

Corruption Perceptions Index 2017 – Transparency International [Accessed on 14 December 2018]
Corruption Perceptions Index 2017 – Transparency International – Methodology Note [Accessed on 14 December 2018]
Corruption Perceptions Index 2017 – Transparency International – Source Description Document [Accessed on 14 December 2018]

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This article was created within the framework of the Project to increase the accountability of the politicians and political parties Truthmeter implemented by Metamorphosis. The article is made possible by the generous support of the National Endowment for Democracy(NED) and The Balkan Trust for Democracy (BTD), a project of the German Marshall Fund of the United States, an initiative that supports democracy, good governance, and Euroatlantic integration in Southeastern Europe. The content is the responsibility of its author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Metamorphosis, National Endowment for Democracy, the Balkan Trust for Democracy, the German Marshall Fund of the United States, or its partners.