Crvenkovski fades into the sunset...
The newest Macedonian national history, spanning from 9th September 1990 to May 17, 2009 has a central figure which dominates. For good or bad, it is the president, now former president of Macedonia, Branko Crvenkovski.
This period is so specific, it can be easily dubbed as Brankos era, a period when his character and personality came to light.
It is widely known that leaders make decisions adequate to their characters. Crvenkovski, of course, was not able to get away from this curse.
Today, we conclude that because of his absolute political power, his results linger and are felt today across the country. It will be interesting for us to research the cult following of certain groups towards Crvenkovski, when realistically his results were not sufficient in any sphere. To leave a mark on a whole generation with dramatic consequences for a country and not have anything positive to show for means that he was some kind of a local political phenom.
He will leave us as a magician whose simple tricks left the public in a trance that allowed him to reach the highest level of Government, absolute power.
Kamikaze politician
Crvenkovski time in power can be split in four phases. The first is since 1992-1994 when powerful socialist directors chose him to complete the privatization, under a specific model.
At that time, Crvenkovski, as a political tabula rasa was satisfied with the role of junior partner in Kiro Gligorovs shadow. However, even then Crvenkovski exhibited his unscrupulousness. With intrigues, which we now know are his specialty, he managed to get to the throne of the SKM-PDP (SDSM) and to illegally enter into the VMRO-DPMNE mandate which they legally won in 1990. His entering in Government when despite losing elections will become one of his signatures moves, for years to come.
Crvenkovski had shown time and time again that he dislikes democratic procedures, regular elections, and is rather angered when he isnt allowed to control the outcome of elections. We have seen him incapable of admitting defeat, a defeat he transcends into collective drama and national frustration without an ounce of care for his people and countrys interests.
His dominant characteristics of egocentric and revenge seeker in fact became the de facto platform and ideology for the SDSM.
Crvenkovskis second phase, from 1994-1998 is the time when Macedonia underwent a complete partization, turning Macedonian institutions into his personal machinery that will keep him in power. This is a time of destruction, a time when he made a complete privatization not just of the economy, but the country.
During this period, Crvenkovski eliminated all of his enemies going as far as to completely remove all opposition parties from Macedonian institutions, his rule can be best described or compared to Kim Jong Il.
Of course, there were zero reforms in the country, nothing was being built, nothing of European value was created.
Crvenkovskis infamous saying was Now is Not the time.
Facts show, he didnt like change, didnt take any risks, and of the biggest quanundrums about him is that he was a kamikaze in politics (Jovan Manasievski).
In the framework of Crvenkovskis myths about his work is that a great leader takes responsibilities and have the courage to make tough decisions. In his case, this is only an illusion as Crvenkovski had never made a courageous decision, as a matter of fact, Crvenkovski always made sure important decisions are made by someone else, which is why today he had never accepted personal responsibility for anything.
If he had rhetorically accepted responsibility, it means he had assured himself beforehand that with his accepting of a responsibility there would be no political damage to himself, or the damage would be very low.
Battle with Gruevski
The third phase of Brankos era is from 1998-2004 when after being an opposition for a very short time, once again illegally entered into a mandate by the way of a proxy war, after he failed to enter Government by creating Parliament majority.
His cold blooded mega comeback was set in stone after the bizarre and suspicious death of President Boris Trajkovski.
No politician would survive two assassinations of two presidents during their mandate, yet Crvenkovski stayed in power with incredible ease, quietly, without any public outrage, as if nothing happened.
It is hard to imagine how many would survive TAT, the complete annihilation of Macedonias middle class, the incredible unemployment of 35%, the destruction of our Agriculture, Healthcare, Education, the SDSMiation and criminalization of all Courts, the misery of Macedonian Diplomacy.
We needed to get Nikola Gruevski to realize the extent and the success Crvenkovski has had in destroying Macedonia. We realized Macedonia, as a country had nothing. everything was fake, even the fakeness wasnt there.
From here we understand Crvenkovskis personal motive for war against the Prime Minister. In every imaginable comparison between the two, Crvenkovski is the loser, something he is deeply aware of. This is why, as a president he opened a preventive front against the Government, hoping that he will take it down before their positive results and comparisons become too obvious, using the same scenario he had already used when taking down Ljubco Georgievski, twice.
Finally, Crvenkovskis path in politics is being wrapped up in the fourth phase, 2004 to 2009. As a president of a country he repeatedly showed he is a president of a small format. He never managed to outgrow his position of a party leader, and never successfully became a president in the true meaning of the word. Granted, he wasnt even trying to act like one.
PM Nikola Gruevski gave him no space or time for his tricks. Crvenkovski, widely famous for his self control, lost his nerve, started to frequently manifest his true character. He started behaving as a party leader, using every minute in the public to attack the Government, sometimes with no control and using language beneath anyone. He lost it for good, the real Crvenkovski showed up: Total disregard for his country and people, attempted to destabilize the country, divide the population, publicly offered his help to Athens, offered his country for sale, lying
To his great surprise, and despite the huge support he received from the constantly bizarre SDSM run media, this time his ratings were nowhere to be found. This is why Crvenkovski did not seek a second mandate, there was simply no chance for him.
Crvenkovskis return as the head of the SDSM, without democratic procedure (he is the only candidate), will prove difficult if he believes that one day his fake glory will return.
Myth for the man - brand
As a great manipulator and demagogue populist, has succeeded to embed his myth in the Macedonian transitional society despite the fact that he is very aware he will never return to power with himself as the leader of the SDSM.
It is realistically to believe that the SDSM are also aware they have no chance with Branko at the helm. This is why the SDSM is putting their money only on one option: Social unrests in September coordinated by the Great Leader.
We are talking about a man-brand: negative, destructive, counterproductive, yet fascinatingly alluring among the socialist elite in Macedonia.
He is not a visionary, nor creative, has no ambitions or goals. Traditionalist in the worst sense of the world, scared and undecided as a character, entered into politics bringing with him his personal luggage.
In his time Macedonia did not move an inch forward. In fact, with Crvenkovski in power, Macedonia moved backward, significantly. If we were to compare him to Milan Kuchan and Milo Gjukanovic, who in the same timeframes, at the same positions, ruled with their countries, we can mathematically calculate Crvenkovskis failures with the successes of Milan and Milo. Only on the plan of their economy and foreign politics, Slovenia and Montenegro are light years ahead, while Macedonia is still choking in its transition.
Instead of a stable strong country, Macedonia became a protectorate where foreign Ambassadors are constructing our daily politics. The liability of Crvenkovski painted our country as inconsistent, susceptible to any kind of foreign pressure.
For twenty years Crvenkovski has played with people's fears that if he is not in power, the country will cease to exist, while at the same time he is the one selling the country.
Crvenkovski has no perception towards time. He has no relation with the past and is not interested in the future. He lives here, today and now. Crvenkovski s myth is a structure that dies with him and the generation that put him on the pedestal. //Mirka Velinovska (former adviser to president Crvenkovski)
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