The head of North Macedonia’s State Commission for Prevention of Corruption (SCPC), Tatjana Dimitrovska, resigned on Thursday following public uproar and an indictment filed against her by the Public Prosecutor’s Office last week.
Parliament Speaker Afrim Gashi’s office confirmed receipt of Dimitrovska’s resignation and said it would be processed in line with parliamentary procedure.
“In accordance with the law, the Assembly will formally acknowledge the termination of her mandate at one of its upcoming sessions, after which a procedure to appoint a new chair will begin,” Gashi’s office said in a statement.
Dimitrovska did not cite a reason for her resignation, merely invoking Article 14, Paragraph 1, Point 1 of the Law on Prevention of Corruption, which allows members of the SCPC to step down voluntarily before the end of their term.
Her resignation follows public calls for her dismissal, triggered by criminal charges alleging abuse of office. However, Speaker Gashi previously said the Assembly lacked legal grounds to dismiss her without a final court verdict.
Prosecutors accuse Dimitrovska of leaking confidential information and unlawfully obtaining a state security clearance. She is alleged to have shared sensitive documents related to the “Additive” case — an investigation into the procurement of chemical agents used in power plants — with Nebojsha Stojanovic, the former director of the Negotino Thermal Power Plant, who is among the 31 individuals and five companies indicted.
According to the indictment, Dimitrovska used messaging apps Viber and WhatsApp on her official phone to share internal SCPC documents, including case files and asset checks, with Stojanovic. She is also charged with computer forgery after allegedly receiving a classified security certificate based on an entrance exam taken on her behalf by a former colleague from the State Audit Office.
The “Additive” case was first exposed by the Investigative Reporting Lab (IRL), which reported that the little-known company Braincode sold overpriced additives to state-run power utilities, despite having no prior experience in the chemical sector. The report suggested that high-ranking officials facilitated the deals, worth millions of euros.
Dimitrovska’s phone was later seized by prosecutors, revealing communications with Stojanovic and confirming suspicions that a third party took her security clearance exam.
The law governing the SCPC allows for termination of a member’s mandate if they resign, are incapacitated, receive a prison sentence of at least six months, or die. The Assembly is required to officially acknowledge the end of the mandate.
IRL’s investigation into the Braincode affair was awarded the 2024 Best Investigative Story prize by the Association of Journalists of Macedonia.