DUI demands probe after company linked to psychiatry director’s cousin wins five tenders at Bardovci hospital

The Democratic Union for Integration (DUI) has called for an official inquiry after alleging that Indigo Inc, a company linked to the cousin of the director of the Skopje Psychiatric Hospital in Bardovci, was awarded five procurement contracts by the institution following the director's appointment.

According to DUI, the first contract was signed three months after Isa Avdullai was named director, in October 2024, with a value of 600,000 denars. The party says Indigo Inc subsequently won four more tenders, including this year’s contract for IT systems and licenses worth about 42,000 euros.

At a press conference, DUI vice-president and spokeswoman Arta Biljali Zendeli said: "The owner of the company, Besim Avdullai, is a cousin of the director Isa Avdullai — a family connection that the director himself has acknowledged. Nor does the fact that the owner changed the company's management position immediately before the first tender erase their family connection."

What DUI is asking

DUI demanded that the Anti-Corruption Commission and the Public Procurement Bureau carry out full investigations of the five procurement procedures. The party called for checks of the tender criteria, submitted bids, participants and the rationale for choosing the winning companies.

"When a company family-linked to the head of a public institution receives five tenders from the same institution, full transparency and scrutiny of the procedures are an obligation, not a choice," the party said, warning that the Bardovci hospital must not become a family business.

DUI also stressed that declaring procedures legally compliant is not sufficient without documentary evidence. The hospital and the director had not issued a public response at the time of the party’s announcement.

Photo: press material from the event