A slew of resignations by prominent party officials who disagree with their leadership’s anti-Western path have rocked Macedonia’s opposition right-wing VMRO DPMNE.
Several prominent opposition party officials and MPs resigned from their VMRO DPMNE party positions in the past few days, accusing the leadership of isolating the party and taking an anti-Western course which they do not want to follow.
The most recent to resign, on Wednesday, was the head of the party’s youth union, Luka Krzaloski.
In his resignation note, Krzaloski accused the VMRO DPMNE’s leadership of being responsible for the “continuous deterioration” of relations with the key international partners such as the European People’s Party.
Another problem he cited was that “key US decision-makers are completely refusing to have discussions with the current [VMRO DPMNE] leadership”.
The resignations come after party leader Hristijan Mickoski ignored calls by key EU and US players to stop opposing the implementation of the historic ‘name’ agreement with Greece which opens up the country’s NATO and EU membership perspectives.
“The youth think that in the recent period, the party has been preoccupied with everyday politics, populism and with adhering to the interests of a small group of people,” Krzaloski wrote.
A day earlier, on Tuesday, VMRO DPMNE MP Daniela Rangelova cited similar reasons when she resigned from her post as head of the party’s women’s association. This automatically meant her resignation from the party’s Central Committee as well.
“I cannot be part of a leadership that has isolated the party… I cannot accept being part of the toxic games led by the ambition to feed the vanity of a few individuals,” Rangelova wrote, in a swipe at the party’s leadership.
Two of her associates who are also VMRO DPMNE MPs, Liljana Zaturovska and Liljana Kuzmanovska, also resigned from the women’s association the same day.
On Monday, the head of the VMRO DPMNE’s parliamentary group, Dragan Danev, tendered his resignation without giving specific reasons.
The resignations represent the continuation of the ongoing turmoil within the party’s ranks.
In October 23, the VMRO DPMNE dismissed one of its vice-presidents and ousted several other high-profile members in what some insiders saw as a purge intended to further centralise the power of its leader Miskoski, who assumed office last year.
Most of the ousted members were proponents of the idea that the party should stop confronting the West over the ‘name’ agreement and practically demonstrate its pro-Western orientation.
The expulsions followed the parliamentary vote on October 19, when seven VMRO DPMNE MPs defied the party line and voted with the government for constitutional changes which would allow the country’s name to be altered to implement the agreement with Greece.
The party leadership immediately expelled all seven MPs.
The current disagreements inside the opposition over its course raises hope among the government majority led by the Social Democrats of Zoran Zaev that during the next two phases of the parliamentary implementation of the name agreement, even more VMRO DPMNE MPs might defy their leaders and offer their support./BIRN
