The city of Stip has prepared all the necessary paperwork to become the first city that has issued a municipal bond, but is facing obstructions from the Government, said opposition leader Hristijan Mickoski. He blamed the obstruction on the fact that the city voted for the VMRO candidate Ivan Jordanov in 2021 to become Mayor.

It was going to be the first municipal bond in Macedonia, possibly in the Balkans. It passed all the necessary paperwork in the Stock Exchange, the SEC commission, the Finance Ministry. But the Government removed it from its agenda. They do so because Ivan Jordanov demolished the much lauded SDSM candidate in the first round of the elections. He is now working hard to improve the city, is able to secure funding for development, and the Government urgently moves to block him, Mickoski said.

He added that two other cities, Radovis and Gevgelija, face similar problems, as do some of the urban districts in Skopje ran by VMRO. “I don’t expect anything from this Government. They are stubborn, they are spiteful and self-centered. They don’t care about the interests of the citizens and their only priority is to enrich themselves on the backs of the citizens”, Mickoski said.