With amendments to the Law on Internal Affairs, which proposes the State Secretary in the Ministry of Interior to be appointed by the Government, and with the already adopted amendments to the Law on Policing, the government wants to tie the hands of the new Minister, who would be the Head of the Interior Ministry during the election campaign, says Pavle Trajanov, an MP from an opposition party, the Democratic Alliance.
According to Trajanov, the purpose of the amendments is to reduce the power of the Minister, as with the amendments to the law, the minister will not be able to decide on the choice of the State Secretary to his own Ministry, which according to the current laws is selected by senior officials from the Ministry of Interior. With the new changes, that choice would become political, and would not be made within the Ministry and its senior staff.
The same intentions were meant for the amendments to the Law on Policing, which ten days ago was on the agenda of Parliament, says Trajanov. With the amendments to Articles 17 and 18 of the Law on Policing, which is the jurisdiction of the work on the part of the criminal police, uniformed police, border police, special police forces and other units, the changes will mean that units will now be organized within the Public Security Bureau (PSB), although until now they have been under the authority of the Central Police Services (CPS). Otherwise, the Chief of the Central Police Services was appointed the Minister of Interior.
“The Directors of the Public Security Bureau (PSB) and the Security and Counter-Intelligence Agency (UBK) are appointed by the Government and the intention here is clear. With these amendments, it is an intrusion into the Law on Policing, with the aim to reduce the minister’s power during the election campaign. This will also be done with the proposed amendments to the Law on Internal Affairs, where the Government will select the State Secretary”, says Trajanov.
The explanation of the proposed amendments to the Law on Internal Affairs, which has been signed by MPs from the majority of the ruling VMRO-DPMNE and the DUI, Sasho Akjimoski, Pavle Sazdov, Marjanco Kolevski, Nada Cipusheva and Talat Xhaferi say the changes are for the practical applications of the law.
“Considering the current practicalities of the law, it has been determined that the positioning of the State Secretary in the Ministry of Interior should be otherwise decided. Rather than being selected from amongst senior staff at the Ministry, this Act proposes that the person should be appointed and dismissed by the Government, upon the guidance of the Minister of Interior”, states the parliamentary proposal which has been submitted in regards to amending the existing law.
Due to practical reasons and “economical and specialized conduct required in areas of police work” were part of the explanation for the proposed amendments to the Law on Policing, which was initiated by the Government.
The proposals of the amendments to the two laws will be executed in a fast track procedure.
The present State Secretary of the Ministry of Interior, Anastasija Ilieska was today named the new Director of the Public Revenue Office (PRO).
