A court in Skopje has ordered the 30-day pretrial detention of the head of the city’s Municipal Cleaning Service and another senior official, following the ongoing failure to collect garbage in the capital. Both are charged with endangering public health and the environment.
In recent days, the situation in Skopje has become unbearable. In many areas, including the city center, garbage trucks either do not operate or carry out sporadic collections. As a result, enormous piles of waste have accumulated, attracting rats and raising serious concerns among residents and health authorities.
The municipal service has yet to provide a convincing explanation for the disruption. However, workers report delayed salary payments and note that much of the garbage truck fleet is out of service due to mechanical problems.
The Public Prosecutor has launched a preliminary investigation into potential offenses by the Municipal Cleaning Service and the outgoing mayor, Danela Arsovska. Elected in 2021 with the backing of the ruling VMRO-DPMNE party, Arsovska later clashed with the party and its leader, Christian Mickoski, the Prime Minister of the Republic. VMRO-DPMNE now accuses her of complete incompetence, while Arsovska claims systematic obstruction by the party, which has left the cleaning service largely dysfunctional for over three years.
Citizens are frustrated with the massive waste accumulation, describing the capital as a “huge landfill.” The garbage crisis has become a central issue in the upcoming municipal election runoff on Sunday, November 2, where VMRO-DPMNE candidate Orte Georgievski will face leftist Levica candidate Amar Metshinovits. In the first round on October 19, Georgievski received 39.42% and Metshinovits 13.18%, surprising many by advancing to the second round.
