With its actions, the DP is hurting these two elements and as a result, the national interests. DP is protesting to protect individual interests and not national interests. In the past two years, the DP’s goal was to block the Vetting process and Judicial Reform
Interviewed by Albert Z. Zholi
On Sunday, in his weekly communication with the public, PM Rama said that “I have been, am and will be ready to meet and talk to the opposition and intervene in the Electoral Code. We’re ready to create any new institutional mechanism which the DP proposes for further improvement of the electoral standards. The opposition is entitled to request the opposition’s resignation all day and a technocrat government all night, but it cannot impose these requests upon a government which has been elected through the free vote of the people.” Prior to this declaration and 3 months ahead of the general elections, PM Rama decided to make several changes in his governing cabinet, by replacing four ministers belonging to the SP. On the other hand, on the 30th day of the protest, the leader of the Democratic Party, Lulzim Basha made it clear that the opposition doesn’t withdraw from its request for a technocrat government which would guarantee free and fair elections. Meanwhile, MEP Eduard Kukan, in an interview (18.03.2017) for European Business Review, accused the Democratic Party for preventing the reform in the judicial system and said that the DP’s actions may threaten the start of accession talks. The situation is complicated. The Vetting process is not taking place according to plans. Rama made it clear that there would not be a technocrat government. But why is the Vetting process being delayed? What is real purpose of the DP’s protest? Does the delay in the Vetting process threaten national interests? Is Rama’s call for dialogue for the electoral reform efficient in this situation? Are the cabinet changes efficient? These are some of the questions that AFP addresses to Mr. Sabit Brokaj…
The replacement of four cabinet ministers has prompted debates. Some say that they were necessary, some not, while the opposition believes that Rama did this to make Meta happy. What is your opinion on this?
There are different points of view on these changes. Of course, PM Rama, who has the main responsibility in the government, has his own point of view. In my opinion, I consider these moves as fully motivated. But given the problematic election campaign that we are expecting to have and the sudden political development that we saw with the DP’s protest, I believe that these changes were necessary. The Prime Minister knows the situation well and he has had his reasons.
You said that the DP’s protest was sudden, at a time when the elections are near. Why did this party choose this moment?
The tent is not something sudden. It may be sudden for the masses, but not for those who know DP’s way of doing politics. The DP is doing this to block the Vetting process and the Judicial Reform. After the DP exhausted all of its attempts to delay or deform the Judicial Reform in parliament, it had no other choice. The propaganda for a technocrat government is something else. Their scope is to create an unstable situation in order to bring new developments, in order to kill off the Reform, to delay or deform it. The first phase of this reform is the Vetting process, which enables the launch of EU talks. If we go deeper into this, we may conclude that the DP is hurting the national interests of Albanians. We all know that EU integration is in the best interest of all Albanians. This is not only a historical strategic goal, but also a necessity of the time. As a country, we have many economic problems and no defence capacities. Both of these things may be realized as part of an alliance such as the EU. By contributing in a negative way to these two elements, the DP and its tent are damaging the national interests of the country.
In his weekly communication with the public, PM Rama said that he’s open for dialogue, even for the Electoral Code, but within OSCE/ODIHR standards. What is your opinion on this? But Rama stressed that there will not be a technocrat government. How will the DP react? Will it continue its protest?
Of course. This protest is their mission. They act based on individual interests and not national interests and they will continue it at least to delay the Vetting or the Judicial Reform until after the elections. They request a technocrat government, but their goal is to stop the Vetting process and the Judicial Reform from happening. As far as the Electoral Reform is concerned, this one is Rama’s responsibility. Rama should have acted on it in time. Many crucial elements of the Electoral Reform, namely the constitutional amendments that were made in 2008 and for which he has a responsibility, should have been corrected a while ago. Rama invites the opposition to talk about the Electoral Reform, but the DP doesn’t care about this reform. This party has not articulated anything regarding the Electoral Reform. The opposition wants free and fair elections, but it has not made any proposals about this. The essence of the entire action of the DP in these two years aimed at blocking the Vetting process and Judicial Reform.
Under these circumstances, do you think that the Vetting process will take place?
The Vetting process may take a little bit of time, but it will be implemented. Vetting is an American project and it was funded by the US, and also the EU. The opposition is trying to deform it. The DP cannot entirely prevent the Vetting process, but it is hoping on some desperate last minute moves to deform the process. Thus, the delays aim at offering an escape route. By taking half of the vetting commission, they achieved a lot. Now, they’re trying to put more pressure and further damage the process.
