Zoran Zaev dismissed criticism from the outgoing Deputy Education Minister Petar Atanasov, insisting that the professor is bitter after he was not appointed Education Minister. Atanasov wrote a scathing resignation letter, rebuking Zaev for failing to implement any of the promised education reforms.

I regret that Mr. Petar Atanasov used such words and published the letter. Taht is his right and responsibility. It is up to me to say that he is doing that because he was not named Education Minister, as he asked me to do a number of times. I decided that he shouldn’t assume that position. Not anybody can be minister, Zaev said during a Sitel TV interview.

Zaev insists that reforms are being implemented in the education system and announced a new law on elementary education.