Officials from the opposition VMRO-DPMNE party are alleging that the Interior Ministry procured additional wiretapping equipment that is being put to use at a sensitive political moment. VMRO member of Parliament Brane Petrusevski said that the equipment was procured by OTA, a newly founded organization tasked with approving wiretaps.

The privacy of our citizens is under threat, and the credibility of this institution is under question. The Parliament Oversight Committee, charged with reviewing the work of the security agencies, concluded that there is grounded suspicion that OTA violated the law and that it unlawfully procured equipment that can be misused. We unanimously decided to notify the State Prosecutor about this – we reached agreement regardless of political lines, Petrusevski said.

He pointed out that the move comes at a time when the Government is openly threatening to begin pressuring opposition members of Parliament again, just as it did in 2019, when it forced the Prespa Treaty on the Parliament. This time the Government wants to push through new constitutional amendments, that Bulgaria wants in place as part of its push to redefine the Macedonian national identity. VMRO-DPMNE strongly opposes the way in which these amendments are being proposed and wants guarantees that they would not allow abuse of the EU integration process and turning it into an endless stream of Bulgarian demands that would undermine the Macedonian nation.

But Government officials now openly say that they will begin “talks” with opposition members of Parliament – the Prespa Treaty included direct criminal charges against half a dozen members of Parliament or their family members, and widespread bribery and blackmail, that eventually provided the votes for the imposed renaming of Macedonia into “North Macedonia”.