Skopje, 27 March 2025 (MIA) - Everything necessary for an economic and social rebirth of Kochani will be among our top priorities as a Government. I hope that we can come together for good things, and for this tragedy to be a lesson to all of us that the things we do today will have consequences in the future. I hope the things we do as a Government today will have positive and good consequences for the future of our citizens and Macedonia, Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski said during TV Kanal 5’s live donor event for families of the victims of the nightclub fire in Kochani.

“As a Government, we are doing everything in our power to save as many lives as possible from those who are injured. I am happy to see that some of them are slowly being discharged from the hospitals in Skopje, but also that there are patients returning from abroad as well,” Mickoski said. 

During the event, President Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova said the country needs to do everything to ensure something like the Kochani tragedy never happens again and “build a healthy system” regardless of who is in power.

“We should stop with improvisations, we should create standards, we shouldn’t be specific, original, originality isn’t necessary in democracy. We should prepare ahead of time instead of always reacting post festum. We should learn in kindergarten how to respond to dangers, to catastrophes, that’s how we will be prepared. I will never get over the fact that this happened during my term. It isn’t only my political and personal trauma, it is a national trauma,” the President said.

Siljanovska-Davkova said she was surprised by the solidarity from the neighboring and the European countries, while also noting that the domestic response was up to the task as well.

“I would like to thank you all for the humane approach. I think that our journalists, especially during that horrific day of the funerals, acted with dignity. I think the political parties acted with dignity as well, the people too,” the President said.

At the event, Speaker Gashi urged unity, stressing that “the sadness and pain affect everyone”.

Gashi said the tragedy should be “the last wake-up call” and that it is high time to determine the priorities in the country and to stop “dividing ourselves by identity”.

“Above all, we are people, and we should build the institutions together. I personally donated, but I think we should encourage all citizens to donate as much as they can. As a society we need to react, and the institutions also need to respond. We need to focus our entire capacity, and it isn’t small, because we have excellent professionals, including the doctors. If we react like that, I am convinced the response will be good and there will be comfort for all those who have lost their close ones,” Gashi said.

TV Kanal 5 is hosting Thursday a live fundraiser with phone-ins and with the participation of ministers, representatives of the political parties and others.

The fire that broke out at the “Pulse” nightclub in Kochani claimed the lives of 59 people and left around 200 injured on March 16.

Photo: Screenshot