English
The city of Skopje and public healthcare authorities reacted today after a widely spread rumor that the water in the city is polluted with the e-coli bacteria.
The reports were widely shared on social media accounts, but also through private messages sent to individual citizens, as alleged “insider information” that the citizens were urged to know, but not share. Some of the accounts sharing these fake reports on the social media are visibly associated with opposition parties, which have been campaigning on the issue of alleged water pollution across Macedonia after the incident in Gostivar, where the local authorities were pumping untreated water into the city supply.
Skopje Mayor Orce Gjorgjievski held a press conference today during which he strongly rebuked the fearmongering, informed that the city tests the water rigorously, and drank a glass of water in front of the cameras. The city water utility company issued a statement informing that it conducted an additional check of the water supply, using rapid testing systems, that came out negative for e-coli or other harmful bacteria.
The rumors caused a run on bottled watter in some supermarkets. Later in the day, police informed that several individuals who originated these rumors were called in for questioning.