Seventeen municipalities will undergo changes in the number of councilors in the upcoming local elections that should be held in October next year. Due to the Government's decision to harmonize the census data in 2021, the number of councilors will increase in three municipalities, and 14 municipalities will have fewer councilors. The Minister of Local Self-Government Zlatko Perinski told "Sloboden Pechat" that they will not allow the opposition to turn a technical issue into a political issue and problem, after DUI in several public appearances accused the government of tending to reduce the number of councilors only in municipalities with a dominant Albanian population.
The reduction of 14 municipal councils is because now only the resident and not the total population is calculated in each of the 80 municipalities and the city of Skopje.

Perinsky: Not to politicize a technical issue

- This is a technical decision that was made by the Government for the purpose of harmonizing the data from the last census. According to Article 34 of the Law on Local Self-Government, the number of councilors is adjusted according to the population in the same local self-government, based on the latest figures that we received as data from the last census. The number of members has been adjusted in 17 municipalities, in three of which there is an increase in the number of councilors, and in the other 14 there is a decrease - says Perinski.

In the elections for mayors and councilors to be held in 2025, the municipalities Studenichani, mineral water и Karposh they will have more tips. In Studenichani the number of advisers increases from 15 on 19, and in Karposh and in mineral water one 23 on 27 member.

The number of councilors will decrease in 14 municipalities. Gostivar, according to the reconciliation from the census, will suffer the biggest reduction in the number of councilors, i.e. it will remain without eight members: from the current 31, after the elections will count 23. The municipal council of Kichevo one 23 will be reduced to 19 advisors, Kratovo - from 15 on 11, Kriva Palanka - from 19 on 15 advisors, Kumanovo - from 33 on 31 member of the Council, a Pehchevo - from 11 will count 9 advisers. Struga council will lose four councillors, i.e. from the current ones 27 will count 23 advisors, Sparrow - from 19 will be reduced to 15, Debarca - from 11 on 9, .Elino - from 19 on 15 advisors, Jegunovce - from 15 on 11, New Village will count minus four councilors, that is, from 15 it will come down to 11 и Tearce - from 19 on 15 member of the council.

– I repeat that it is a technical decision based on the latest figures obtained from the census. If someone plans to create a political problem, they should first ask themselves - why in accordance with the creation of their policies in the past 20 years we have reached where we have reached. This issue should not be made into politics. This is a technical adjustment of the number of councilors, which we legally have to do and will apply to the local elections that will be held next year - says Perinski.

 DUI is wrong

The opposition DUI accused that the "ethnically illegitimate government", specifically apostrophizing it It's worth it, again played politically to the detriment of the Albanians and reduced the number of councilors in the municipalities with an overwhelming majority of Albanians, because she agreed to exclude the non-resident population. Integratives came out with a list of municipalities where the number of councilors is decreasing and pointed out Gostivar, Struga, Kichevo, Vrapchiste, Želino and Tearce, according to DUI.

However, DUI politicizes the issue and manipulates because, firstly - Gostivar, Kichevo and Struga are ethnically mixed municipalities, and secondly - because the number of councilors is not only decreasing in conditionally predominantly Albanian, but also in predominantly Macedonian municipalities. The General Secretary of DUI Faton Ahmeti, criticizing the budget for 2025, which he called discriminatory and without legitimacy, said that the diaspora is not foreseen by a government decision as a criterion in the allocation of state funds for the development of municipalities.

"Municipalities with an Albanian population will not only have fewer members in the municipal councils, but also less financial resources for economic development," Ahmeti said.

It's worth it answered DUI that the census was conducted while they were in power and that now they have no right to complain about the possible consequences of the census, because when they should have spoken, they remained silent.

The Minister Perinsky explains that the change in the number of councilors due to compliance with the last census does not require amendments to the Law on Local Self-Government because in the same law, in Article 34, the gradation based on how many inhabitants the local self-government can have the number of councilors is precisely determined. According to Article 34 of the Law on Local Self-Government, the number of council members is determined depending on the number of residents in the municipality and cannot be less than nine nor more than 33 members, and in municipalities with up to 5.000 inhabitants - nine councilors, in municipalities with 5.001 to 10.000 inhabitants - 11 councilors, and those with 10.001 to 20.000 inhabitants - 15 advisers. Municipalities that have from 20.001 to 40.000 inhabitants - 19 councilors, from 40.001 to 60.000 inhabitants - 23 councilors, from 60.001 to 80.000 inhabitants - 27 councilors, from 80.001 to 100.000 inhabitants - 31 councilors and the municipalities with over 100.000 inhabitants have the most - 33 advisers.

- All decisions of the Government are published in the Official Gazette and become effective from the day of publication. So, these things are already finished - says Perinski.

And the former director of the Statistics Office Apostle Simovski, during whose mandate the census was conducted, confirms that only the resident population is considered for the number of councilors in the municipality.

- Non-residents essentially do not have a residence here, they have an address because they have documents that they are our citizens, but they are outside. Especially in the local self-government, they do not use anything, nor do they contribute - says Simovski.