English
Tetovo Mayor Bilal Kasami began to backtrack his calls to Albanian supporters to vote for Albanian candidates – even from DUI, the chief rival of his VLEN party, and against VMRO-DPMNE candidates. This after Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski sternly reminded Kasami that it was VMRO voters in Tetovo who provided him the advantage in the first round, and who helped elect VLEN candidate Izet Mexhiti in Cair.
Asked point blank whether he wants VLEN to support the DUI candidate against the VMRO candidate in the ethnically divisive race in Kicevo, Kasami now said that “he wants to focus on his race in Tetovo”, withdrawing his previous endorsement of the DUI candidate.
At this time I’m focused on the support I expect to get from my fellow citizens and my full engagement will be in this direction. On all other issues, the position will be given by the VLEN coalition, Kasami said, before adding that he has worked a lot to implement projects that benefit both ethnic Macedonians and Albanians and other groups in Tetovo.
VLEN issued a statement calling on the DUI candidate in Kicevo, Fatmir Dehari, to drop out of the race because of recordings showing him harassing a female employee. “Dehari decided to remain in the race, putting Kicevo in a difficult position and proving that for his political caste (DUI) holding on the power is the last remaining oxygen thye have”, VLEN said in its statement, that all but endorses the Macedonian candidate, doctor Aleksandar Jovanovski. Married to an ethnic Albanian, Jovanovski has struck a conciliatory tone, as opposed the DUI candidate Dehari, who is a former UCK guerrilla commander.
After the warning from Prime Minister Mickoski, Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandar Nikoloski also told Kasami to live up to the coalition agreement from which he hopes to benefit in the second round. “We promised that DUI will go in the opposition after 20 years, and we delivered on that promise. Then, we promised that we will retire Ali Ahmeti from politics, and that is now just a matter of time. Now, politicians need to understand that they can’t be an alternative to Ahmeti if they act in the same way he does. Kasami should not feel ashamed about the fact that the Macedonians in Tetovo supported him in the first round. He needs to deliver for them, as his voters and supporters. We will continue to cooperate in the Government, but only on the basis of principles and values. We can’t call on a vote for Kasami in Tetovo, on the premise that we don’t want a return of DUI there, but at the same time have him ask for votes for DUI in Kicevo”, Nikoloski said.
