Series index:

1. An EPO Administrative Council Exposé -- Part I: A New EPO Balkan Affair?
2. You are here ☞ A Mysterious Fist-Bumping Masquerade in Skopje

A mysterious fist-bumping masquerade: Gerasimovski takes over from Emruli at the SOIP in Skopje.

Summary: The official website of the SOIP doesn't really help to clarify what was going on

As reported in the introductory part of this series, the records of the EPO's Administrative Council confirm that a fresh face representing North Macedonia appeared at the 165^th meeting of the Administrative Council on 15 and 16 December 2020.

"But this time round he wasn’t being dismissed on the orders of his Minister."The new kid on the block, Goran Gerasimovski, replaced the longtime incumbent Safet Emruli [PDF] who seemed to have disappeared without trace.

It's all very confusing and the official website of the North Macedonian SOIP is not much help in clarifying matters.

All that can be found there is an official announcement dated 27 October 2020 entitled "Information regarding the appointment of the new Director of SOIP".

It's the usual anodyne PR stuff/fluff, presumably intended for recycling by the captured "IP" media such as "Managing Intellectual Property":

Today, the current Deputy Director Goran Gerasimovski officially takes over the function of acting Director of the State Office of Industrial Property.

"Ready for new challenges, we continue to work transparently and tirelessly. By protecting intellectual property, we are moving the Macedonian economy forward, encouraging innovation and creating conditions for young people to realize their talents at home," said Gerasimovski.

All employees of the State Office of Industrial Property expressed their gratitude to Dr. Safet Emruli, who headed this institution in previous years. The Office continues with the current and additional activities, in accordance with the priorities of the new management. The aim is to emphasize the importance of the protection of intellectual rights and the great contribution that innovation has to the development of the economy and the state.

The announcement is accompanied by a photo of the new Director together with his departing predecessor, both masked up and exchanging a fist-bump. It's depicted as nothing more than a routine passing-on of the baton to a new successor.

But hold on a moment, folks, something doesn't quite stack up here...

What exactly is going on behind the scenes at this mysterious fist-bumping masquerade?

Emruli, who was initially appointed as SOIP director in 2008, had been reappointed in 2018 and, on the basis of available information, he isn't anywhere close to retirement age.

He finished his primary law degree some time between 1999 and 2001 which probably puts him in his early to mid-forties. And there's no news of him taking up another position elsewhere.

The missing piece of the jigsaw puzzle here is the reason behind Emruli's departure. And the SOIP website remains completely silent on this score.

The only clue that could be found in this regard was a bulletin in Albanian from a local news channel in Tetovo, dated 22 October 2021.

The bulletin contains the following statement (in translation):

"The General Director of the State Office for Industrial Property Safet Emruli has submitted his resignation tonight and will no longer be the director of this body."

The article goes on to list a number of new civil service appointments and dismissals.

It turns out that a new coalition government was formed in North Macedonia at the end of August 2020 under the social-democratic SDSM led by Zoran Zaev. As is often the case with the formation of a new government, there was some reshuffling of top civil service appointments.

Emruli had survived previous changes of government without any difficulty. The renewal of his appointment in 2018 took place under the previous SDSM government, likewise led by Zoran Zaev.

But this time round he wasn't being dismissed on the orders of his Minister.

On the contrary, he had resigned.

The question that immediately springs to mind here is: did he jump or was he pushed?

Stay tuned as we try to shed some light on this mystery. But, before doing so, we will conduct a quick review of Emruli's role in EPO affairs over the last decade or so and his close connections to the senior "doyen of IP" in the Balkan region. ⬆

Appointment of Gerasimovski (screenprint)