Chief Prosecutor of North Macedonia Ljubomir Joveski announced on July 12 that a broad front will be formed to fight corruption in the country, about a month after the United States added the Mayor of Struga Ramiz Merko to the blacklist.
The announcement by the Chief Prosecutor follows a report by the Special Commission of the Republican Prosecutor’s Office on the work of the Struga Municipality in southwestern North Macedonia, which found that out of the 30 cases initiated against mayor Ramiz Merko, none of them have been processed by law enforcement authorities.
In a written statement, Chief Prosecutor Joveski said that he “will give instructions to the relevant institutions on how to act within the anti-corruption front”. However, he did not clarify the purpose of his initiative or why law enforcement agencies have not acted so far but have waited for a reaction from the United States to undertake such an effort.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Financial Police, the State Audit Office, the State Commission for the Prevention of Corruption, and other state institutions will be involved in the anti-corruption front.
The investigation into Ramiz Merko’s work only began after his name was added to the U.S. entry ban list on June 20 due to significant involvement in corruption.
“Merko misused funds and interfered in judicial processes and other public matters, undermining public trust in the institutions and democratic officials of North Macedonia,” the U.S. State Department statement said.
Ramiz Merko, as a member of the Democratic Union for Integration (DUI), has been the mayor of Struga for 14 consecutive years, and there have been numerous allegations of misconduct during his tenure, but the institutions have never reacted.
U.S. Ambassador to Skopje Angela Aggeler expressed her “disappointment” with the failure of judicial reforms, despite the half a billion dollars invested in the past thirty years.
“Unfortunately, our investment in the progress of the judiciary did not yield the expected results,” Aggeler said.
Other institutions have not commented on the Chief Prosecutor’s announcement, but they have continuously emphasized their commitment to fighting corruption, particularly in response to increasing criticism from the international community. However, they have not achieved concrete results, leading to a continuous decline in public trust in the justice system.
Minister of Justice Krenar Lloga, as well as his party, the Alliance for Albanians, became part of the government in March of this year, promising an international vetting process in the judiciary. However, this was rejected by the EU, arguing that the work of the judiciary would be evaluated through the integration process investigation.
