VMRO-DPMNE began its presidential campaign the way it does all its election campaigns – with a major rally in the Macedonian cultural capital of Ohrid. VMRO leader Hristijan Mickoski introduced the party’s candidate in the coming presidential elections Gordana Siljanovska – Davkova, and both presented the elections as the best chance to bring down the Zoran Zaev regime.

There is a lot of anger out there, after what they did to Macedonia. So join us, it is time to take action, Mickoski called on the thousands of VMRO-DPMNE supporters gathered in Ohrid.

Mickoski praised professor Siljanovska as an impeccable and principled scholar with a spotless career, who has been critical of both VMRO and the left when necessary.

Her opponents say she used to criticize us in the past. I agree, that is true. But that is her added worth. Her criticism shows that Gordana has the credibility and integrity which is necessary make her words count, said Mickoski.

Siljanovska said that the imposed name of “North Macedonia” is “rootless and has no future”. She said that the only option is to reassert the name Republic of Macedonia. Siljanovska is a strong critic of the Prespa treaty under which the Zoran Zaev regime forcibly renamed Macedonia and as a legal expert she led the expert criticism of the treaty and its numerous violations of international law, basic principles of human rights and parliamentary rules and procedures.

We need to win the elections and to open the way for early general elections. I’m not saying taht if you elect me we can restore the name immediately. That is impossible. But, I’m certain that this rootless name can’t have a future. We will have a President close to the people, we will have responsible people in the Parliament, we will have new constitutional judges who will protect the Constitution. And then, one day, we will constitutionally protect the name with an entrenchment clause, Siljanovska said during the first major rally of her campaign.

In her remarks, Siljanovska described the tremendous erosion of human rights and the rule of law in Macedonia under the Zoran Zaev regime.

They said they will fight corruption, but instead they installed a hybrid regime. We have a Communist style Parliament, staged political trials, revenge attacks and selective justice. The only “reform” they initiated is the Prespa treaty and the name change, said Siljanovska.

Mickoski informed that the Zaev regime is siccing the police on the coming VMRO supporters, stopping their buses under the pretext of “urgent technical checks”, but in reality trying to reduce the turnout in Ohrid.

As the SDSM – DUI presidential candidate Stevo Pendarovski held his first rally in Krusevo and Prilep and tried to present his leftist – Albanian coalition as the ticket for European Union membership, Mickoski insisted that the right fights for actual European values, not merely empty rhetoric which gets quickly denied by the actions of the Government.

Gordana will be the counter weight which will balance out the Government. She will fight for European values a a matter of principle, and not just as naked rhetoric, and she will fight to implement the values we all deeply strive for, added Mickoski.

He strongly denounced the divisive rhetoric used by Zoran Zaev, Pendarovski and other SDSM leaders during the four years long political crisis sparked by them with the wiretapping affair. Mickoski reminded the public how Zaev abused emotionally charged incidents and events to bolster his political fortunes, dividing the Macedonian society in the process, but now, when he leads the Government, he has forgotten about the people he pretended to care about. Zaev abused the police brutality murder of a young VMRO supporter named Martin Neskovski in 2011 to build the allusion of murder cover up which he insisted goes all the way to the top of the Government, while now several other murders that happened on Zaev’s watch remain unresolved.

Has Zaev asked the Martin Neskoski family what their life is like now? He built his career on their case. Did he ask the family of young Martin Janusev, did he speak with the family of Sazdo? Zaev even lied to the parents of the boys killed in Smilkovsko lake in 2012. He said he will reveal the truth about the death of Nikola Mladenov. He mystified everything, gave false hope to the families, and we see how nothing came off it, Mickoski said, speaking about the uniquely twisted approach to politics which Zaev and his SDSM party embraced.