Skopje, 29 June 2025 (MIA) -- Fifteen members of the public have requested a meeting with Health Minister Azir Aliu since the option was introduced last week through the Open Cabinet link at the ministry's website, Aliu told a news conference Sunday.

"True reform begins when the institution stops talking to itself and starts listening to the people with an open mind and a clear commitment to change. So we are not only launching a new website but creating an institution that listens and responds," Aliu said.

Through the Open Cabinet app, the health minister said, members of the public can schedule a meeting with him any Friday "with no barriers and no bureaucracy."

"A face-to-face, personal conversation with respect, responsibility and readiness for real solutions. The first 15 meetings have already been scheduled. This is proof that citizens have things to say and finally there is somewhere where they can be heard. I am here to hear them out," Aliu said.

The initiative, he said, was not merely a service.

"It is our public duty. A duty that I have undertaken as minister with full responsibility and I will fulfill it daily through my work, being accountable and personally present," the health minister said.

Speaking about his vision of public health care, he said the system needed to "talk to citizens," be trustworthy and have integrity.

"A system not guided by impressions, fear or political pressures but by accurate data, real analysis and the true needs of the population," Aliu said. mr/