Today, the campaign for the upcoming referendum (September 30th) was officially launched. Citizens will go to the polls and answer the ballot question “Are you for EU and NATO membership by accepting the agreement between Macedonia and Greece?”
Heading the campaign is the Parliament of the Republic of Macedonia, and Parliament Speaker Talat Xhaferi announced that they will carryout the campaign in a transparent and direct manner, without discrimination or prejudice and with respect for the will of each citizen.
In the Parliament’s campaign, 71 MPs from all parliamentary groups will participate, with the exception of the opposition VMRO-DPMNE, who informed Xhaferi that they will not take part in the campaign and asked that the funds be spent for other purposes.
Xhaferi called on all participants in the campaign to act accordingly, correctly and with dignity in order for citizens to make the right decision on September 30th.
Parliament will purchase advertising space in some of the 65 media outlets, who were expected to deliver a price list to the State Election Commission for the referendum by August 10th. The media plan will be published via the Parliament’s official website and MPs will conduct the campaign on television and radio and will have nine minutes per hour to present their views.
Plenary sessions in Parliament during the campaign are not expected to take place, but the Speaker of Parliament does not exclude the possibility of holding an urgent session if necessary.
Hristijan Mickoski leader of VMRO-DPMNE said that this week the party will present their official position on the referendum. The remaining parliamentary parties have not yet announced specific information on when and how they will run their campaigns.
