Macedonian Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski refused the demand from opposition SDSM leader Zoran Zaev, saying that the people, and not Zaev, are the ones to decide who will sit in the Government.

"Zaev's main demand is to form a so-called transitory Government, something like a grand coalition, and, of course, resignations in the Government, from me, the ministers, etc. The citizens are the ones who decide who will be in the Government, and not him", Gruevski told reporters on Thursday.

On Tuesday, Zaev demanded resignations from the Government and the creation of a new Government that would prepare early general elections. Zaev did this at a rally in Skopje, where he presented audio files he claims show irregularities in elections performed by the ruling VMRO-DPMNE party.

"Citizens took part in the elections and know well whether there was pressure or anything like that. But Zaev comes with fabricated material trying to persuade the citizens that they didn't vote on their own free will, that they didn't vote in the way they did, and that they were pressured to vote. It's as if we were standing in a desert, and Zaev is telling us that we are at a mountain, a mountain no-one else can see but him", Gruevski said, speaking about Zaev's allegations.

Speaking during his visit to the Statistics Bureau, the Prime Minister added that his Government worked hard to bring in foreign investment and to reduce unemployment, which is an added reason that gives it the support of the voters. Unemployment went down almost 10 percent during the VMRO-DPMNE term in office, even though it is still at a high level of almost 28 percent.

"The decrease in unemployment is due to the good business climate that is bringing in companies willing to invest. We gave appropriate support to foreign companies, with our road show presentations, approaching them directly, appointing ministers in charge of bringing investment. The low and flat tax rate also helped to turn Macedonia in a country that has one of the best conditions for business in the world", Gruevski said.