During the Parliament question time, Zoran Zaev was asked about the developing corruption scandal within his Government, in which a top SDSM party official is accused of racketeering businesses with the help of a media outlet.
The scandal was revealed by journalist and former Zaev supporter Branko Geroski, who uses fake names for the official and his associate, the media outlet owner, named only as Kiki and Koki.
I asked about this and the institutions confirmed to me that the case is being investigated. It is a bitter feeling that something like this might be hapening and I’m prepared to help if need be, Zaev said.
While Geroski is careful not to name those he is implicating directly, anybody with a passing understanding of Macedonian politics can easily identify “Koki” and “Kiki”. In a heated debate with Antonio Milososki, Zaev went a step further and he identified the municipality wher Koki and Kiki were allegedly trying to pressure the local SDSM Mayor to give them a valuable piece of state owned real-estate as Bitola, under the guise of a fake humanitarian project. Zaev said hat he met with the Bitola Mayor who confirmed the attempt.
That happened, there was a request a year ago. They asked for a location to build a home for the elderly, and demanded a municipal tax exemption, and to include a location into the spatial plan which was absolutely impossible because Bitola had no intention to do it. The competence is with the city Council and the investigation should determine who did this. The law should apply to all, equally, no matter if we are talking about a high ranked member of SDSM or the Zaev family, or a media owner, Zaev said.
According to Geroski, the attempt in Bitola failed, but Koki and Kiki were able to get a piece of land in a near-by resort city, which they quickly re-sold for significant profit.
I hope to God I have evidence to help clarify this matter. I’m at your disposal if I can help, direct institutions to see whether a former or current Mayor, businessman, is involved. It’s all the more reason for me to contribute to the fight against corruption, racketeering, crime or any other unlawful activity, Zaev said from the Parliament booth.
Still, he would not acknowledge knowing who his party official – Kiki – is. According to Geroski, it is a top SDSM official from the city where the scheme failed, which Zaev today revealed to be Bitola.
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