The President of the Assembly, Talat Xhaferi, scheduled the session for Thursday to vote on the confidence of the Government, after yesterday such an initiative was submitted to him with the signatures of 61 MPs by VMRO-DPMNE and the coalition, AA and Alterativa, Besa and Left. Then, according to party information, Xhaferi invited the Prime Minister Zoran Zaev to a meeting in the Parliament, where DUI leader Ali Ahmeti was also present. According to the information so far, however, it is uncertain how many MPs will vote no confidence in Zaev’s government on Thursday.
SDSM confirmed to MIA last night that Xhaferi called on Zaev to personally inform him about the submitted initiative for a vote of confidence in the Government and the next rules of procedure.
After the initiative was submitted, the Cabinet of the President of the Assembly informed that a Request for a vote of confidence in the Government had been submitted.
– The President of the Assembly, Talat Xhaferi, in accordance with Article 215 paragraph 2 of the Rules of Procedure of the Assembly of the Republic of Northern Macedonia, will convene the session on the request for a vote of confidence in the Government, and the session will be held on the third day confidence of the Government, ie on Thursday, November 11, 2021, at 11.00. According to Article 215 paragraph 3 of the Rules of Procedure of the Assembly, the deadline for convening a session begins to run the next day from the day of raising the issue of confidence in the Government, according to the Cabinet of the President of the Assembly.
VMRO-DPMNE Vice President Aleksandar Nikolovski previously announced the initiative at a press conference and said that it was signed by 61 MPs, but also that they are talking intensively with other MPs.
– If a vote of confidence in the Government is to be voted at the moment, I expect there to be 61 plus, ie intensive negotiations are underway with several other MPs in the Macedonian Parliament and I expect that the no-confidence motion in the Government will be signed by more than 61 MPs, said Nikolovski.
Regarding the formation of a new government or possible new quick elections, the vice president of VMRO-DPMNE said that it is something that will be discussed after Thursday.
– We should sit down with our partners and see what are our program commitments of all those who want to form a political government or for quick elections, said Nikolovski.
Pointing to parts of the explanation for the vote of confidence, he said that “the government led by SDSM and DUI has not brought significant results in the previous five years, but on the contrary rules with fraud and bargaining at the expense of the most important issues of the people.”
After submitting the initiative, Prime Minister Zaev took to Facebook. – For a vain desire for power, they were ready to take the country downhill, and the people to suffer. These days we are witnessing a threat to the Prespa Agreement, the Good Neighbor Agreement with Bulgaria, the Ohrid Framework Agreement, the common one and equal society, the peace of the citizens inside and the good relations with the neighbors, wrote Zaev.
According to the information so far, however, it is uncertain how many MPs will vote no confidence in Zaev’s government on Thursday after one of the MPs of Alternative Skender Rexhepi Zayd said that if the Left remains on the list for the fall of the Government, he will not be part of it. nor will it support voting. Additionally, last night the coordinator of the parliamentary group of VMRO-DPMNE, Nikola Micevski confirmed that he and MP Angelinka Petkova are in isolation, but are expected to come to the Assembly on Thursday after the submitted Initiative for a vote of no confidence in the Government in accordance with the Protocol adopted by The Committee on Infectious Diseases was applied to the Parliament in April this year.
Regarding the statement of the MP Skender Rexhepi Zeid on Facebook, the leader of the Left and MP Dimitar Apasiev posted on Facebook that he believes that the MPs of the Alliance of Albanians, Alternative and Besa have, as he wrote, a historic chance to put DUI in opposition.
Last night, the Central leadership of Alternative held a meeting after Rexhepi said that he would not be part of the list for the fall of the Government nor would he support the vote on Thursday if the MPs of the Left remain on the list.
Alternative spokesman Orhan Murtezani said the debates were ongoing and at the moment, he said, they had no decision, but that their MPs would be united no matter what.
– Considering that we have time until Thursday, the discussions in the party will continue tomorrow and by Wednesday at the latest we will have a concrete position on how our MPs will perform. However, I can say one thing for sure – any decision we have will be respected by all MPs from Alternative, said Murtezani.
Besides Skender Rexhepi, Altenativa MPs also include the party leader Afrim Gashi, Safije Sadiki-Shaini and Husni Ismaili.
In a statement to the media, the President of the Liberal Democratic Party Goran Milevski said that the LDP has no signatures, and will not be on the list to achieve a new parliamentary majority, composed of VMRO-DPMNE, Alternative, Alliance for Albanians, Left and Besa.
– LDP signatures are not on the list, they will not be. I can not comment on everything that is said, said Milevski.
On the other hand, the MP Martin Kostovski from SDSM raised an initiative for Zaev to remain at the helm of the party. Many of his party members, coalition partners, but also senior politicians from the international community believe that Prime Minister Zaev’s resignation was hasty and brought in an emotional moment. Most are of the opinion that the country is facing significant reforms, which are feasible only with stable institutions. They call on Zaev to make a wise decision in order for the country not to fall into a political crisis, from which the whole society would suffer. They point out, among other things, that it is a period when the country is still dealing with the coyote pandemic, both in terms of health and economy, while additionally threatening the energy crisis. They remind that the misunderstandings with Bulgaria are to be resolved, which would unlock the country’s European integration process by starting accession negotiations.
According to them, the political opponents offer, as they say, the exact opposite, because the supporters of Hristijan Mickoski continue to deny the Prespa Agreement, the Good Neighbor Agreement, the Ohrid Framework Agreement, but also undermine interethnic tensions at home.
A majority vote of the total number of MPs is required for the Assembly to vote on the vote of no confidence in the Government. If a vote of no confidence is cast in the Government, the Government is obliged to resign, according to the Constitution.
Article 216 of the Rules of Procedure of the Assembly, on the other hand, states: “The question of confidence in the Government is being investigated. One of the MPs who asked the question for a maximum of 30 minutes has the right to explain the issue of trust in the Government. The order of the MPs by parliamentary groups and MPs who are not organized in a parliamentary group, and who will participate in the debate, is determined in agreement of the President of the Assembly with the coordinators of the parliamentary groups before the beginning of the session. During the debate, the MP can speak several times for a total of 15 minutes, and the coordinator of the parliamentary group for a total of 20 minutes.
Article 217 stipulates that the Assembly votes on a vote of no confidence in the Government after the expiration of the third day from the day the question of confidence is asked.
If a vote of no confidence is cast in the Government, the Prime Minister shall resign from the Assembly within 24 hours of the vote of no confidence, referred to in Article 218. The President shall immediately inform the President of the Assembly of the vote of no confidence in the Government .
Source: MIA
