A “row” between colleagues

A few moments after the Wednesday’s session in parliament, where the prosecution’s motion for the arrest of the former Interior minister, Saimir Tahiri was rejected, Prime Minister Edi Rama made a statement in front of the press, but this communication ended up in a tense episode between the two sides. This moment caused a real storm and in the past 48 hours, the public opinion’s attention is no longer focused on Tahiri’s case, but on the relations that Rama has with media and journalists.

There have been different opinions, but for most part, the political class and the media had a critical stance against Rama.

But there have also been other voices, not as emotional as the majority, which have tried to put themselves in the Prime Minister’s shoes. This has made them present all of this episode as a premeditated “scenario”, calculated by him in advance and put in play as an excellent professional actor, with the aim of sending out a message not only for the media, but for the entire political class, society and people within it. He knew that they needed such show to calm down after being bombarded for a whole week with a case which at certain times, looked as if it would go beyond Saimir Tahiri himself.

When I saw this from my personal perspective, I put myself in the shoes of those reporters and I reacted like them. When I saw this through the eyes of the politician, I perceived it the same way Rama did. When I put myself in the position of the common people, I don’t know why I thought differently from everything I read and heard about this issue so far.

More than a clash involving a political leader, the chairman of the biggest party and the Prime Minister of the country, what I saw looked more like a “row” between colleagues. This is not the first time that he is involved in such moments with media representatives. And it certainly will not be the last time either. I am certain of this.

I am saying this not only as a journalist who continues to be active in the media or a man who knows the ins and outs of politics now, but also as a man who has been involved in clashes such as that one with Edi Rama, in the position of journalist. The relations that he has with the media have turned into a case study, where some people have seen him as a superstar and some others have seen him like Murinho. And this makes the relation that Edi Rama has with reporters different to the one that a Prime Minister of the country has with them.

What’s special about this report is the fact that before he entered politics, Edi Rama had a long career as a publicist. Not only as author and co-author of books, but also as writer of tens and tens of newspaper articles and journals. He entered the newsrooms of these media with the same familiarity that he entered the auditoriums of the Academy of Arts, when he was a professor. He has personal acquaintances with the main protagonists of the media from 1990 until 2000, with whom he has shared difficult moments and beautiful moments.

By analyzing Edi Rama’s personality, his way of writing, his way of speaking, his way of dressing and his gesticulations, I can identify the reasons of this relationship where Edi Rama is intentionally or unintentionally involved. But, one thing is sure, he’s always passionate even when he argues with journalists, because although he’s a politician, inside he feels like a journalist, the same as many journalists, on the other hand, who feel like politicians. They spend all day talking about politics, reporting about politics, analyzing politics, they spend time with politicians, they laugh with them, they have rows with them and clash with them, according to the mood of the main developments in the country and everyone’s needs.

Of course, in a country where a Prime Minister doesn’t need to deny himself the opportunity to sometimes feel as a journalist and publicist, journalists have no reason not to feel like politicians either. So, it seems that this new clash between them is not that new in fact and it’s not even that strong, in contrast to the way many people see it.

More than a clash between the Prime Minister and journalists, the head of the government and the media, the chairman of SP and reporters, all of this looks like a “row” between colleagues for reasons that not everyone is able to understand, believe or accept. And above all, nobody is obliged to see it this way.

More than this, one thing is sure: intentionally or not, acting or not, getting angry or pretending, the “colleagues” didn’t let Edi Rama down this time either. By making him so “angry” during these two days, instead of putting themselves in the position that every other prime minister which didn’t have Rama’s background, would put himself, we saw how they intentionally or unintentionally assisted him. As if by magic, this diverted the attention from Tahiri’s case.

Tomorrow will be a new day. Edi Rama and his journalist “colleagues” will certainly be thinking about the next topic of the day, rather than this row that they had.