Skopje, 29 May 2025 (MIA) — A few minutes before midnight, Parliament elected Trajko Slaveski governor of the National Bank of the Republic of North Macedonia, with 68 lawmakers voting in favor and 16 against.

During the debate on his competence for the post, governing coalition members focused on his qualifications and opposition members drew attention to Slaveski's party affiliation, casting doubt on his ability to maintain the independence of the central bank.

VMRO-DPMNE member of Parliament Bojan Stojanovski called Slaveski "a visionary pioneer."

"We need to take into account his economic and social activities, too. He is a visionary pioneer of measures that have given results. We need to talk about his expertise. All other issues are irrelevant," Stojanovski said.

ZNAM Movement parliamentary group coordinator Bojan Karapejovski said if Slaveski was an expert then it did not matter what his private feelings were or whether he was affiliated with any political party.

Alliance for Albanians MP Elmi Aziri expressed his doubts over Slaveski's suitability for the post, pointing to "the fact that professor Slaveski has had 25 years in political office."

SDSM parliamentary group coordinator Oliver Spasovski said Slaveski had the necessary experience for the job but did not meet the criteria of "high moral integrity and dignity." He also said he was not accountable and transparent in his communication with members of the public and the institutions.

SDSM lawmaker Fatmir Bytyqi said the central bank needed to be led by someone who would make sure it stayed independent so the decision on the new governor needed to be made after a thorough review and careful consideration.

Levica MP Rexep Ismail said he was against the nomination of Slaveski to the governor post because he had been the "staunchest opponent of raising the minimal wage" and he would also contribute to increasing corruption and widening the gap between the rich and the poor.

Alliance for Albaniance lawmaker Halil Snopçe suggested Slaveski had blatant political connections that were "a threat to the institution's autonomy."

MP Sanja Lukarevska said SDSM would not vote for a governor of such character.

Trajko Slaveski was nominated for the post by President Gordana Siljanovska Davkova. Born in Ohrid in 1960, Slaveski teaches at the state university's Faculty of Economics. He has attended postgraduate programs at California State University (1986-87) and Harvard University (1989-90) and spent six months at Arizona State University (1997) as a visiting professor.

He is a co-author of the Anti-Inflation Program that Parliament adopted in April 1992, alongside laws on monetary independence, to combat hyperinflation. He has also authored and co-authored eight books and published numerous papers in academic journals.

Slaveski has previously held the posts of development minister (1999-2000) and finance minister (2006) in the Macedonian government. During his term in office as finance minister, he was also the Republic of Macedonia's governor in the World Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

He ran in the 2021 local elections as VMRO-DPMNE's top candidate on the party's Skopje councilor list. In November 2021, he was named City of Skopje council chairman, an office he still holds. mr/