LSDM calls on prosecution to investigate 5.5 million euro independence celebration funding

The State Commission for the Prevention of Corruption announced a day earlier that it has launched a procedure over suspicions of a conflict of interest against Nikollçe Micevski, who chaired the selection committee for the sole bid to organize the 35th independence anniversary celebration, and later appeared as a participant in the program that he had helped select.

On the other hand, LSDM reacted through a statement to the media, insisting that the Prosecutor’s Office intervene over what they describe as the “misappropriation” of 5.5 million euros linked to this celebration, funded by the State Lottery. According to them, it is not enough for the State Commission for the Prevention of Corruption to act only against a particular individual.

Although the Commission announced that it has opened the case on the potential conflict of interest, it also clarified that the investigation does not extend to the overall sum of 5.5 million euros allocated for the independence anniversary. Regarding this aspect, the institution is monitoring the situation but has not yet taken formal steps.

In today’s statement, LSDM stresses that the opening of a case by the State Commission for the Prevention of Corruption against one official does not constitute an investigation into what they call the “misappropriation of 5.5 million euros,” considering this merely a small part of the total scandal. According to them, the whole matter requires that the Prosecutor’s Office investigate the trail of the money.

“The conflict of interest of a member who was also a contractor represents only a fragment of the overall picture. Micevski claimed that the celebration cost ‘zero denars,’ but the public was informed of an expense of 5.5 million euros, followed by silence and the hiding of contracts, annexes, invoices, and payments, including tax obligations. This is a modus operandi of a criminal structure, aimed at obscuring commissions, dubious deals, and abuses. Citizens have paid Mickoski’s bill and have the right to know the final destination of every denar,” concludes the LSDM statement.