Transparency International Macedonia continues to carry out its regular monthly activities for monitoring cases and activities related to corrupt behavior and the fight against corruption, which we’ve named “Light & Dark”
The monitoring of these cases has received significant attention, both in the public sphere and among domestic and foreign relevant stakeholders, and over time, it has evolved into a relevant indicator for measuring corruption and assessing the government’s willingness to address this issue.
“DARK” OCCURRENCES FOR JULY 2025
The President of the SCPC illegally accessed the classified information system a colleague took the exam on her behalf to obtain a “State Secret” Certificate – The Prosecutor’s Office announced that an indictment has been filed against the President of the State Commission for the Prevention of Corruption (SCPC), Tatjana Dimitrovska, for disclosing official secrets to a defendant in the “Additive” case. She allegedly extracted and photographed data from the Commission’s files related to the procurement of additives in the state energy sector and the purchase of fuel oil by Nebojša Stojanović, a defendant in the “Additive” case and former director of the Negotino thermal power plant. However, what is particularly shocking is that, during the investigation, an inspection of Dimitrovska’s official phone revealed that she and another state official, an auditor had committed forgery and illegally accessed the classified information system. Dimitrovska “hired” a fellow auditor (prior to her role as SCPC president, she had been an auditor at the State Audit Office), who used her passwords and codes to access the system, attend lectures, and take exams in her name so that she could obtain a “state secret” certificate.
Old wounds in the new European Commission Report on North Macedonia – Respect for the principle of separation of powers, prevention of further negative consequences from the amendments to the Criminal Code, effective implementation of anti-corruption reforms, and an independent judiciary… These are just some of the recommendations in the European Commission’s 2025 Annual Rule of Law Report. “North Macedonia continued to implement judicial reforms, but interference and pressure from other branches of government raise serious concerns regarding judicial independence,” the report states. The European Commission notes that the current legal grounds for the potential dismissal of the Chief Public Prosecutor include broad definitions, such as “inappropriate behavior that undermines the reputation of the public prosecution” which create room for legal uncertainty and political influence in the process of dismissing the Chief Prosecutor. The Commission also expressed concern over several cases related to respect for judicial independence and the principle of separation of powers. One example cited was government-level announcements about the possible “dissolution” of the Judicial Council and the Council of Public Prosecutors.
Doctors, lawyers, and other officials involved in a criminal network for disability pensions and caregiver allowances – A total of 36 individuals have been suspected of abuse in the process of granting rights to caregiver allowances and disability pensions. Following a months long investigation, the Prosecutor’s Office claims that the suspects, as part of two criminal groups, acted as intermediaries and enabled the illegal acquisition of disability pension and caregiver benefits, charging between 150 and 5,000 euros for their services. Ten individuals are charged with criminal association, bribery, and offering or receiving rewards for unlawful influence. Five others are accused of criminal association and accepting bribes, while the remaining 19 face charges for giving bribes and offering rewards for unlawful influence.
Audit uncovers serious systemic weaknesses in the operations of the Health Insurance Fund in 2023 – Insufficient oversight and IT weaknesses threaten the healthcare system and public finances. The State Audit Office has identified serious systemic weaknesses in the operations of the Health Insurance Fund for the year 2023, pointing to the absence of a unified, integrated system for referrals, medical reports, and billing. The lack of adequate controls creates a risk of misuse of public funds and undermines the efficiency of healthcare services, according to the 2023 audit report. State Audit Office identifies financial and systemic irregularities at the State Attorney’s Office – In its final reports on the State Attorney’s Office of the Republic of Macedonia, the State Audit Office points to multiple financial and systemic irregularities. A lack of transparency and irregularities in public procurement procedures have been noted, as well as issues with hiring individuals under service contracts for positions that are already defined in the official job classification system.The systemic weaknesses include undefined procedures for performance evaluation and disciplinary measures for state attorneys, unclear rules on compensation for living away from home, and ambiguities in the processes of advance payments and reimbursement of expenses. State Audit Office: The Public Enterprise for Management of Sports Facilities has not legally existed since 2017, yet still operates
The State Audit Office is unable to confirm the financial position of the Public Enterprise for Management of Sports Facilities because, for several years, no inventory of assets, receivables, and liabilities has been conducted. Additionally, there has been no reconciliation between accounting records and the actual condition established through inventory. A large portion of the documentation has been lost due to flooding in its offices or seized during investigative procedures by the competent authorities. Insufficient healthcare budget and delays in hospital construction noted in the 2023 Audit Report – The audit of the Ministry of Health for 2023 revealed that 23 healthcare programs were implemented with insufficient funding, which negatively affected the liquidity of public healthcare institutions, caused shortages of medicines during certain periods, and exposed weaknesses in internal controls, according to the State Audit Office’s report. Additionally, capital projects including the construction of new clinical centers are experiencing long-term delays and financial implications affecting the overall project costs. These issues directly impact the accessibility and quality of healthcare services for citizens. Audit of the basic court in Prilep: No internal audit unit and no provisions for determining salaries–There is no established accounting system, and data in the AKMIS application regarding seized funds, valuables, and other confiscated items is incomplete. Moreover, no inventory of such items has been conducted. The inventory of cash and liabilities was not carried out in accordance with the regulations set by the Rulebook on Accounting for Budgets and Budget Beneficiaries.
SCPC identified a violation of the law on prevention of corruption and conflict of interest by a professor and deputy director at the Institute of Animal Husbandry– The State Commission for the Prevention of Corruption (SCPC) has determined a violation of the Law on Prevention of Corruption and Conflict of Interest involving a professor and deputy director of the Institute of Animal Husbandry and Fisheries at the “Ss. Cyril and Methodius” University. Commission member Zoran Bogoevski stated that the SCPC found that the official committed a violation under the law. Specifically, there were business activities between the Institute and a certain legal entity that was subject to inspection by the Inspectorate. During the inspection, the Inspectorate determined that one of the co-owners of the legal entity, according to data from the Central Registry, was the spouse of the official employed as a professor at the Institute.
“LIGHT” OCCURRENCES FOR JULY 2025
Well-Known ophthalmologist from Bitola arrested for accepting a bribe – second such case this year – A well-known ophthalmologist from Bitola was arrested at her workplace at the Clinical Hospital in Bitola after receiving money from a patient in exchange for a medical service. “Police officers from the Criminal Police Unit of the Bitola Interior Department, in coordination with the Public Prosecutor’s Office in Bitola, detained the doctor employed at the Bitola Clinical Hospital on suspicion of committing the criminal offense of accepting a bribe. The Ministry of Health condemned corruption in the healthcare system through an official statement and announced that a procedure to determine disciplinary responsibility against the doctor has been initiated immediately. The Ministry encouraged citizens to continue reporting irregularities through the online tool “Report Irregularity.”
Indictment against the director of the geriatric institution – accused of demanding a €20,000 bribe – A prosecutor from the Basic Public Prosecutor’s Office for Prosecuting Organized Crime and Corruption has filed an indictment against the director of the Public Health Institution “13th November” – Skopje and another individual, on suspicion of accepting a bribe and receiving a reward for unlawful influence. The director, as the primary defendant, is accused of demanding €20,000 from a witness in order to admit a person in critical medical condition to the institution. Although such admission falls under his official duties, the director allegedly made it conditional on receiving personal financial gain. According to the indictment, the second defendant received the amount on the director’s behalf to influence him and persuade him to admit the patient.
Indictment for abuse of official position and authority – The Basic Public Prosecutor’s Office for Prosecuting Organized Crime and Corruption has filed an indictment proposal against an individual accused of committing the criminal offense of Abuse of Official Position and Authority under Article 353, paragraph 5 in relation to paragraph 1 of the Criminal Code. According to the indictment, during the period from 2021 until March 15, 2022, the accused, acting as the Acting Chairperson of the Council for Advancement and Supervision of Auditing of the Republic of North Macedonia, by failing to perform and exceeding official powers, acted contrary to several legal provisions. In doing so, the accused unlawfully gained financial benefit for themselves and others, causing significant damage to the institution’s budget.
Citizens will be able to report irregularities in healthcare on the Ministry’s website –From now on, citizens will be able to report irregularities in healthcare through the Ministry of Health’s website. Reporting will be anonymous, but citizens can leave personal contact details such as a phone number and email address so that authorities can reach out if there are any questions. According to the new measure, data on the number of reports received by public healthcare institutions will be publicly published at the end of each month, showing how many irregularities have been reported by citizens for each institution.
