SDSM: Orce Gjorgjievski posts a spraying calendar while Skopje counts West Nile deaths
SDSM says a list of spraying dates cannot replace answers about why Skopje became an epicentre as the West Nile outbreak claims four lives.
The Social Democratic Union (SDSM) sharply criticized Skopje Mayor Orce Gjorgjievski on Tuesday, saying that his public defence — a published calendar of mosquito-spraying dates — does not explain why the city has become the epicentre of a West Nile virus outbreak.
In a written response the party accused the mayor of deflecting responsibility while Skopje records fatalities. "Orce Gjorgjievski reads a spraying calendar, and Skopje counts four dead. Orce Gjorgjievski has no answer for the epidemic, so he attacks SDSM. We did not declare the epidemic in the Skopje municipalities. We did not bring the citizens to the Infectious Diseases Clinic. That happened in the city he leads," SDSM said.
SDSM reminded the public that, "as of yesterday," the country has 38 confirmed cases of West Nile virus and four deaths. The party stressed that the victims belonged to the highest-risk groups: elderly people and those with chronic illnesses.
Questions over timing and effectiveness
The party asked why Skopje has the highest number of cases if, as the mayor claims, aerial and ground spraying on 7 May and subsequent treatments were effective. "The calendar is not proof of results. The calendar is an alibi. Gjorgjievski says public health is not protected by press conferences. True. It is not protected by a list of dates either while the mosquitoes finish their work," SDSM wrote.
SDSM demanded concrete answers: who measures the effectiveness of spraying, which breeding sites remain untreated, and why clear guidance to citizens — especially older and chronically ill people — arrived late or contained mixed messages. "This is politicization: opening pools for cameras, then emptying them because of mosquitoes; reading dates but not saying why the standing water and untreated spots remained; attacking SDSM to avoid answering before families," the party added.
Mayor Gjorgjievski replied on Facebook by comparing current measures to actions taken in 2018 and listing the aerial and ground disinfections carried out from May through August. He also announced further treatments planned in the coming days.
Photo: press material from the event
