Kuzmanovski: Bitola's clock tower rose in two years, yet new fire station remains delayed

At a municipal council meeting in Bitola on September 18, councilor Dimitar Kuzmanovski sharply criticised the pace of local capital projects, contrasting the two‑year Ottoman‑era construction of the city's clock tower with the prolonged building of a new fire station.

Council debate on budget execution and project delays

Speaking during a review of the municipality’s second‑quarter 2026 budget execution, Kuzmanovski said the historic Saat‑kula was completed rapidly in 1839 while the modern fire station has stalled. He told the council: "Imagine, in 1837 they started to build the Saat‑kula and in 2 years they made it. In Turkish times they carried materials with donkeys and in 2 years built a 33‑metre high [tower], and we cannot in 5 years make one Fire Station. We received a one million dollar donation from the US Department of Defense and it is still in the karabina phase. And they took pictures more than 20 times, boasted that the gutters were fixed, that the brick was put."

Kuzmanovski pointed out that the Bitola Fire Unit, founded nearly 190 years ago by decree of the Rumelian vali, is the oldest on the Balkans but still operates from an outdated station that does not meet modern standards. He recalled that the construction of a new fire station began in April 2024 with municipal funds and that the local authorities announced last November they had received a one million dollar donation from the United States. The building remains under construction.

For Kuzmanovski, the stalled fire station is emblematic of slow implementation of the city’s capital investments. Citing an official reply he had received from the municipal administration, he said that in the first six months of 2026 only 23.5 percent of planned projects were realised. He also noted that two new kindergartens have not been opened yet and that children who had been on waiting lists have already started school.

Addressing the council directly, Kuzmanovski added: "But for putting on a hat you might be first. For organising concerts, events, gigs, celebrations, you are the best. The mayor and half of the public administration, you will see them in the front rows like the priest and the policeman in the villages who went to weddings, first in line. You should be thankful to the former mayor Natasha Petrovska who built the stadium and the Officers' House so you have places to hold concerts and celebrations."

Council President Bojan Bojkoski of VMRO‑DPMNE disputed Kuzmanovski’s portrayal and provided a project status breakdown from the municipality’s Development Programme: of 180 projects, 62 are finished, 48 are in implementation, 31 have signed construction contracts, 12 are in the public procurement phase and 27 projects have no tender announced. "That shows that 85 percent of the projects have movement," he said.

Bojkoski also rejected claims about the site size, stating: "It is a lie that 500 square metres are being built at the Fire Station. The parcel where construction works are being carried out is 3,300 square metres with a usable area of 1,600 square metres. The project is executed in two phases, the first with funds from the municipal budget (53 million denars), up to karabina is finished. The second with support from the US Embassy and the project will be completely finished, as it says on the board, by August 2027."

He added that the kindergarten next to the Army of the Republic of North Macedonia (ARM) will be ready by the end of the current construction season, and that the other kindergarten by the "Kliment Ohridski" school will receive a technical acceptance in the coming days. Bojkoski also highlighted recent local investments: "We built 13 sports playgrounds, once you come to power, the only thing you will be able to do is repaint them," he told the opposition.

The council session and the exchange between the two politicians underline the tension over the pace of local infrastructure projects in Bitola as the municipality reports partial progress while opposition members demand faster delivery.

Main person: Dimitar Kuzmanovski

Photo: SDK.MK)