VLEN: After 20 Years in Power, DUI Left Behind Promises While Projects Are Being Delivered Now

The VLEN coalition has responded to statements by the Democratic Union for Integration regarding infrastructure projects, criticizing the party for producing more promises than concrete results during its two decades in power.

According to VLEN, DUI continues to talk about securing funds and preparing documentation, but citizens are once again being told the same story they have heard for 20 years.

“For two decades, DUI promised projects, announced motorways, designed roads and spoke of investments. But in the end, citizens were left with promises, while the party elite received privileges,” VLEN said.

The governing coalition says the difference between it and DUI is now clear. According to VLEN, projects that for years appeared on maps and were presented at press conferences are now turning into construction sites.

VLEN lists among these investments the motorway toward Gostivar, progress on the motorway connection toward Kičevo, the start of work on the road connection with Kosovo and the construction of Corridor 8. “While DUI poses for photographs, VLEN is working on the ground,” the coalition said.

The statement also raises the question of why these projects were not completed during the years when DUI was part of the government if, as the party claims, the funds and documentation had been secured.

“If everything had been secured, why were these projects not built over 20 years? Where was that money? Why did the western part of the country remain for two decades with narrow roads, dangerous points, unfinished routes and infrastructure that did not meet citizens’ needs?” VLEN asked.

The coalition claims that during the period when DUI participated in various governments, major infrastructure projects were often limited to presentations, announcements and promises of tenders. Meanwhile, the citizens of Tetovo, Gostivar, Kičevo, Struga and other municipalities continued waiting for the announced investments.

VLEN stresses that today, in addition to motorway-related projects, boulevards are being built in Tetovo, investment is being made in the new campus of Mother Teresa University in Skopje, and infrastructure projects are being implemented in Struga.

According to the coalition, roads, sewage systems and water-supply networks are also being built in municipalities where Albanians live. “The excavators are on the ground, while DUI is at press conferences. That is the difference,” the statement said.

VLEN accuses DUI of seeking to claim credit for projects currently being carried out. The coalition emphasizes that securing financial resources and preparing documentation have no value if they are not accompanied by the concrete implementation of the projects.

“Money on paper is not a motorway. A project in a drawer is not a boulevard. A promise at a press conference is not infrastructure. Citizens do not travel on party statements, but on roads that are built,” VLEN said.

The governing coalition says citizens now have the opportunity to compare the promises made over the years with the projects that, according to it, are taking shape today. “DUI left behind files and promises. VLEN is leaving behind roads, bridges and completed projects,” the statement concluded.