SKOPJE – Macedonian president Gjorge Ivanov has five days remaining to give the mandate to “the party’s candidate or the parties that have a majority in the parliament” in order to form a new government coalition after the early parliamentary elections held on the 11th of December.
Out of these six days left for negotiations, three days are working days and the other are non-working and are placed in between two religious holidays celebrated by citizens of Orthodox religion. On Friday, the 6th of January it’s Day before Christmas and the next day it’s Christmas which means that the parties will have three effective days to come to a deal which parties will enter the new government coalition.
Taking into consideration that Day before Christmas and Christmas are one of the major holidays in Orthodox Christianity it is unlikely that during these two days the Parliament would be electing a president and that Ivanov would give a mandate for a prime minister.
Even though none of the parties will officially stand up and say, but unofficially for a coalition of a minimum of 61 MPs will have more combinations on the table and therefore everything is still undecided who will form a new government.
The Parliament’s constitutive session was held on the 30th of December last year and since then the 10 days that are determined by the Constitution during which the president of the state will give the mandate, are expiring.
The final deadline during which Ivanov has to give the mandate for forming a government is on Monday, the 9th of January.