The chairman of the Democratic Party, Lulzim Basha, criticizes the last attempt for the normalization of the works of the parliament between the deputies of the socialist majority and the support wing of the former prime minister Sali Berisha, as a collaboration between Rama and Berisha that will harm the implementation of the electoral reform.
In the interview with the Head of the Albanian Service of the Voice of America, Arben Xixho, Mr. Basha dwells on the internal problems of the division in the Democratic Party, as well as on the recent decision of the Supreme Court, that the case of January 21 should be investigated by the Prosecutor’s Office Special. Mr. Basha says that the order to shoot at the protesters did not come from him.
Interview with the chairman of the Democratic Party, Lulzim Basha
Voice of America: Mr. Basha, what are you here in Washington for these days?
Lulzim Basha: I am here as a rapporteur of the Council of Europe on a mission I would say historic to coordinate between the Council of Europe and the United States of America on the confiscation of Russian assets and making them available for the reconstruction of Ukraine.
Voice of America: Mr. Basha, these days there has been an effort to reach an agreement between the majority of socialists and the majority of democratic MPs who support former Prime Minister Sali Berisha in order to restore normality in parliamentary life. What is your comment, your reaction to this new development?
Lulzim Basha: For every development in Albania, the new standard of a new political culture, which we as the Democratic Party aspire to build in dialogue with the whole society, is the answer to a question: Does it serve the Albanians and how does it serve the Albanians? Based on the recent developments in Albania, I can say that our long-standing warnings have shown that Mr. Rama and Mr. Berisha cooperate for their interests, but against the intentions of the Albanians.
Voice of America: Against what interests in this case?
Lulzim Basha: Electoral reform, in particular. We have been presenting proposals to the electoral reform commission for a long time, which go beyond party interests, but are in the interest of the citizens. Such are the proposal for open lists; that the citizens choose themselves who they will send to the parliament and not the leaders of the parties. This is the ‘de facto and de jure’ undoing, if the proposal were to be adopted, of the Berisha – Rama constitutional amendments of 2008. This is also our proposal for the equality of the vote, because today in Albania, thanks to this system, it is clear that no there is equality of vote. With 8,500 votes, the deputy in Vlora is elected, but 13,500 votes are needed to elect the deputy in Kukës. Both of these are related to two other proposals related to decisions of the Constitutional Court such as the vote of the diaspora, the vote of Albanians outside Albania,
Voice of America: However, your party has been part of the electoral reform commission for a long time, and it has been a year and a half since this commission has made no progress. Is your party responsible for this lack of progress? Only recently have you asked to proceed with the electoral reform, while nothing was done in a year and a half.
Lulzim Basha: The responsibility of the Democratic Party is whether it has an active role or not. I am pleased to say that the representative of the Democratic Party, the co-chairman of the electoral reform commission, and at the same time the general secretary of the Democratic Party, Mr. Alibeaj, together with the team of experts, has contributed throughout this year and a half in two large blocs. The first block was the block of proposals to combat the phenomena of vote buying, use of public administration, pressure on voters, use of state administration and state assets. The second block of proposals has been in the electoral reform commission since November and contains four proposals: open lists, Albania an electoral zone, electronic voting and electronic counting, as well as the vote of the diaspora. Of course, the will of the other party is needed.
Voice of America: The Commission’s mandate expires on March 21. What will happen next?
Lulzim Basha: It is not up to us to say what will happen next. What is up to us is that we will continue the battle for these principles, for these values, for these standards, which are part of our vision with coherence and cohesion with all those components of the pro-Western and Euro-Atlantic opposition. to put the election processes in Albania back on track, which have been derailed for a long time. We can say with our mouths full that the Democratic Party has part of the responsibility for this, whether with the constitutional changes of 2008, and the consequences of these changes. That’s why I say with my mouth full that the only question that every politician should answer is: Does this serve Albania? Clearly, what is happening is not in the interest of Albanian citizens, but in the personal interests of Mr. Rama and Mr. Berisha.
Voice of America: After the non-grata declaration of Mr. Berisha, you expelled him from the parliamentary group of the Democratic Party, but you failed to keep the party united. How do you explain the fact that today the majority of the Democratic Party supports Mr. Berisha?
Lulzim Basha: I will not enter into a numerical debate, which is anyway based on the perceptions of one party or another. I mean that fighting for the truth, fighting for the right comes with sacrifices and great costs. But not fighting for them is the biggest crime when you are in public service, in the service of citizens, when you are in politics, because it practically damages their interests, buries their hopes for a better future. This is what happened in Albania. The main politicians in a synergistic theater with each other have effectively killed hope in Albania, and the main problem of Albanians is that today they do not believe in democratic institutions and electoral processes. Therefore, our main mission is to restore trust in politics, as an instrument of change for the better, in politics with a human face, in politics that protects and promotes the interests of the people and not a handful of politicians, who have 34 years since the fall of communism that order the Albanians and decide their fate.
VOA: Still, the numbers can’t be easily overlooked. The number of deputies who supported you is smaller than the number of deputies who support Mr. Berisha. As was seen with the last local elections in Albania, the number of votes for this wing of the Democratic Party was greater than the rest…
Lulzim Basha: That’s why I don’t want to get into a number debate, because in the case of the Democratic Party, it didn’t run in 51 municipalities…
VOA: The question is…
Lulzim Basha: … as far as the number of deputies is concerned, they are individuals, who are there because they were on a closed list of names arranged by the party chairman, so I think we should avoid the debate on numbers.
VOA: The general election is approaching. They are next year. What is your offer to backers?
Lulzim Basha: The first and foremost thing is to give up this ugly soap opera that is played at the expense of Albanians. Day after day we watch a theater of accusations and counter-accusations, which then fade away at night or return to bazaars. This is the old way of doing politics and it has cost Albania and the Albanians a lot. Opening a direct dialogue with the citizens for us means, first of all, not just to point the finger at what is happening at their expense, because the Albanians experience this themselves, but what do we offer and is this a reliable offer, and is there a reliable way to accomplish this? From the tax system, which is weighing more and more on honest entrepreneurship, on professionals, to the situation of the Albanian farmer, which is worse than any farmer in the Balkans, worse than the farmer in Kosovo or in North Macedonia due to the lack of subsidies, investments and due to the lack of access to the market. The state of youth, where everything is related to the situation in education, in universities, in the labor market. The state of Albanian pensioners, which is the weakest of all pensioners in the Western Balkans. So, a realistic offer, because it will be based on the reality and opportunities that Albania has and a reliable team, to realize this program, that is, not to remain in an electoral program, but to return to a governing program.
Voice of America: You criticized the political leaders, who have been there for a long time, but you yourself have been in Albanian politics for many years. Since the expulsion of Mr. Berisha from the DP parliamentary group, you have apologized for your mistakes, but you have not specifically mentioned for what. Can you share with your electorate and with us some of those things that you would do differently today?
Lulzim Basha: In all the cases I have had, recently also in the National Assembly of the Democratic Party, we have exhausted what was done wrong. We should never hesitate to apologize for what was done wrong, but what is important for Albanians is what we offer today. Why should they look to the Democratic Party? And I tell you that there are two reasons: The first is because it is the only political force that has drawn up an inherent program, not electoral slogans, not something to respond to the taste or the demands of the moment, but a program which is based on a deep knowledge of the reality, of the problems that Albania has, as well as of the opportunities to provide solutions to these problems. This program is the product of a team of experts, not politicians, with assistance from Western, European and US experts. The second reason, which we are fast approaching; we are not there yet, it is the team of the Democratic Party, which will consist of people of reputation, have faith in the community, not people who see politics as a profession for themselves, but as a service to the people. I am convinced that with the completion of the process of reorganization of the Democratic Party, very soon in a dialogue, in a debate, not behind the scenes, we will give the Albanians a team of 140 candidates, who will be a reflection of at best, where Albanians can really believe that their interests will be represented and protected and not the interests of certain clans, factions or persons.
Voice of America: Let’s dwell on another development of these days in Albania. The Supreme Court ordered the Special Prosecutor’s Office to register a criminal trial for the events of January 21, and we are reporting your name as well. At that time you have an interior minister. Are you afraid of investigations into this case?
Lulzim Basha: Not at all. I have demanded a full and transparent investigation from the beginning. Of course, I do not comment on any court decision. 13 years have passed and it is clear, I believe, even for the families of the victims, that the case was used for politics, for narrow political gains. We can even see people who were accused on the night of January 21, but who were then promoted by the Socialist Party as branch heads or mayors of the Socialist Party. It is a dirty game even with the blood of these four innocent victims.
Voice of America: However, the victims were killed by bullets coming from the prime minister’s building, when you were interior minister.
Lulzim Basha: And for this I have asked for a complete and transparent investigation since the first day, because I personally have nothing to hide or be afraid of and I believe that in this case, as in any other case, justice must to act unhindered by politics and political statements and not used by politics.
VOA: You rule out any possibility that an order or instruction came from you that day?
Lulzim Basha: Without question.
