Zaev’s first Deputy Prime Minister Artan Grubi followed quickly after Zaev’s press conference today and voiced his position that the Deputy Healthcare Minister Ilir Hasani will not be removed for the Tetovo hospital disaster that killed 14 patients and family members, who were burnt alive on September 8th.

In the Zaev Government, Grubi has mandate over the ethnic Albanian officials, such as Hasani, and while Zaev declared that his favorite – Healthcare Minister Venko Filipce won’t be leaving his position, Grubi was out to defend the decision to keep Hasani in place.

I read the report, and it is obvious that this was an unfortunate, tragic accident that killed so many of our fellow citizens. I therefore believe that the decisions that the Prime Minister will make are in line with the report and the views of the prosecutors, Grubi said, talking about Zaev’s decision to refuse the offers of resignation, that Filipce and Hasani made two days after the fire, under strong public pressure.

A preliminary report by the forensics teams found that the fire began in an electric extension cord that was used to power a defibrilator and several other devices, including phone chargers. As most of the victims were ethnic Albanians, the issue became especially politically difficult for DUI, which faced protests from the families of those killed and had to resort to police protection of its main headquarters near Tetovo. Grubi said that it will only be the two managers of the Tetovo hospital who will be removed from office, since they gave irrevocable resignations.