A scandal has shaken the Municipality of Kičevo after audio recordings with compromising content appeared on social media, posted by a profile named “El Cheka.” According to the descriptions of the recordings, a voice is allegedly heard, which is claimed to belong to the current mayor of Kicevo, and candidate of the National Alliance for Integration (NAI), Fatmir Dehari, in a conversation with a municipal employee. The posts state that the recordings contain explicit sexual allusions and inappropriate comments, allegedly made during working hours and within the municipal premises.
“Start at high school — the principal will pursue you! Go on a school trip — the teacher will pursue you! Go to work — the mayor will pursue you! Then the weak mentality of people makes the victim (the girls) the victim, not the spoiled creeps caught in old age. Oh, Kicevo, Kicevo, how they’ve destroyed you,” wrote El Cheka on Facebook, as a result of the alleged conversation between Dehari and girls employed in the municipality.
The comment sparked intense reactions and an avalanche of condemnations in the public.
The VLEN coalition announced that it is following with concern the latest scandal circulating on social media, and which has shaken the public in Kicevo and beyond, where the candidate of the National Alliance for Integration is seen in situations that degrade the image of the institution and public moral.
“This is just a reflection of the political culture that for 20 years has suffocated accountability and raised shame to the level of a standard. We do not take pleasure in anyone’s shame, but we have an obligation to clearly state that Kicevo deserves better. That’s why the citizens of Kicevo, on October 19, have the opportunity to speak with one voice against this degraded model,” the statement of VLEN reads.
Following the release of the recordings, VMRO-DPMNE MP Emilija Angelova also reacted, stating that such behavior, if confirmed, represents “humiliation for every woman, regardless of ethnic background.”
“This is a disgrace to our entire multiethnic mosaic and an insult to all those raising daughters with hard work, respect, and dignity. Such behavior must be condemned by everyone — both Albanians and Macedonians and every honest citizen,” Angelova stated.
From the recordings, as is stated in the descriptions of the posts, it can be heard how female employees in the municipality were allegedly exposed to inappropriate behavior and inappropriate comments. These allegations have sparked numerous reactions on social media, but also demands for the resignation of Dehari, who is currently a candidate for a new term.
Angelova asked whether the women from DUI will respond to these allegations, whether the Commission for Prevention and Protection Against Discrimination will open a case, and whether party leader Ali Ahmeti will distance himself from such actions, if they are confirmed.
“This must not go without an institutional response. Women are no one’s property — they are mothers, daughters, wives, and their dignity must be protected,” Angelova added.
DUI responds to the released scandalous audio recordings related to the current mayor of Kicevo, Fatmir Dehari, saying that whenever Albanians in Kicevo become a decisive factor, mechanisms of the underground are activated – laboratories of services that operate in the dark – with the purpose to divide and discredit their political representatives.
“We know this scenario well: when they can’t confront ideas and have no projects, they invent scandals, stage conversations, fabricate ‘facts’ and spread them with a single goal – for the citizens to lose trust in politics and stay home on decision-making day. Kicevo will not succumb to this trap. Let’s save Kicevo from the filth of old politics,” DUI states.
The party adds that before any public reaction or drawing of conclusions, it is essential to carefully check the authenticity of the audio material.
“Only with a clearer and credible assessment from the competent institutions or experts can we responsibly speak about its content. Any comment or discussion without such confirmation would be speculative and potentially harmful, both for the affected individuals and for the public interest,” DUI concludes.
The profile “El Cheka” is not new to the public. Namely, six years ago the same profile published a series of recordings – so-called “bombs” – which contained incriminating content about several members of the DUI party and Dehari himself. At that time, the Basic Public Prosecutor’s Office in Kicevo filed charges against Shekerim Ahmeti in connection with those posts.
Until the publication of this text, there has been no official position or denial from Fatmir Dehari regarding the latest posts by “El Cheka”. The public is demanding a full clarification of the case and an institutional response, should the authenticity and content of the recordings be confirmed.
Dehran Muratov in cooperation with CIVIL Hybrid Threats Monitoring Team (CHTM)
Translated by: N. Cvetkovska