In a social media post, former Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski dismisses Zoran Zaev’s latest claims about the way in which he left Macedonia and went to Hungary to seek political asylum. Faced with the loss of the promised June accession date to open EU accession talks, Zaev reverted to the Gruevski case, claiming that the VMRO leader left Macedonia in the trunk of a car to avoid police surveillance.

The man who made a family business out of growing marijuana seems very high lately. After claiming that I may have been kidnapped in November, now he claims that I escaped in the trunk of a car. I’ve never considered doing that and Zaev knows the truth. I left Macedonia because of the staged, politically driven trials directed against me personally by Zaev, without any evidence or even crimes. I left because an assassination was being prepared for me in prison. I left the country easily and simply, and now Zaev wastes a quarter of a TV show meant to present his accomplishments lying about me, Gruevski said.

The former Prime Minister says that it was Zaev who, as opposition leader, was leaving Macedonia hiding in cars to go to a neighboring country to negotiate on his power grab.

You can stay high, but it’s almost time to say goodbye. The people are not feeling very high and they see you lie like you breathe, Gruevski adds.