Socialist MP Fatmir Xhafaj delivered his speech at the second high-level meeting “Albania2030 in the EU – The Path of Reforms”, held today in Tirana. Xhafaj, in his capacity as head of the special parliamentary committee for Anti-Corruption, presented the findings of the work of this committee.
According to him, after the success in the justice reform, it is time for another reform that will precede Albania’s membership in the EU and this has to do with good governance, anti-corruption and the rule of law.
‘The draft, strongly based on the findings of the analytical document, has the measures agreed with the EU in the integration of negotiations. The document was elaborated by the committee group and negotiated with the Albanian group with the public administration and civil society and has been supplemented by the expertise of foreign experts. It has been an intensive work debated with consultation tables,’ said Xhafaj.
Xhafaj further added that the parliament should no longer be a place of political conflict but that MPs have a responsibility to ensure that citizens have better governance at the local and central levels.
‘The Assembly and the committees have an essential role.
It is part of our duty as MPs to ensure that citizens have better governance at all levels, that citizens are affected as little as possible by corrupt behaviors and that society is more responsive to corruption. 10 months ago we initiated a reform to offer solutions on this path, with the courage to reflect on ourselves to move forward.
To bring the chance of membership closer as soon as possible. To continue the cycle of reforms to deepen state-building reforms for good governance, anti-corruption and the rule of law. The process has been engaged by a high-level group from the academic world, civil society, and the business world,’ adds the MP. He further stated that the anti-corruption commitment of the commission he leads will continue in the coming months, while underlining that EU membership comes with merit, namely the reform of the state.
“The commitment will continue in the coming months to fully conclude this process. We are proving some simple truths. EU membership remains a strong ambition that enjoys high citizen support, EU membership is an existential issue. We are working hard to enable Albania to join the EU in 2030.
We want EU membership through meritorious entry into it with state reform.
This reform process proves that we have the vision and ability to move forward on our own. Despite all the positive steps in these years, corruption remains a worrying phenomenon. Great steps have been taken to punish corruption at high levels with new institutions in the justice system,” Xhafaj emphasizes.
For Xhafaj, reform should aim to prevent corruption and not simply send corrupt officials to prison.
“A healthy society is not measured by how many people go to prison, but by how much preventive capacity it has. This draft action plan aims for a more proactive role of the assembly, in meeting the challenges of integration. It also ends the skepticism in the debates developed from the wrong understanding of the separation of 3 powers. Albania is a parliamentary republic and the Assembly is the bearer of the will of the people,’ says Xhafaj.
This reform follows Xhafaj’s success in the justice reform as a vision of the socialists.
“This process is evidence of the growth of the country and its institutions. After the justice reform, we are undertaking another reform of this magnitude as a will of the vision of our internal capacities. Fate has chosen me to chair both parliamentary committees. I say with conviction that we have the capacities to undertake such steps that countries similar to ours have not had the courage to undertake. We must take care to increase them further by making them intellectually and professionally independent.
We appreciate the importance of international expertise. I appreciate the expertise of the EC, EU projects, the French embassy, USAID, the American embassy,” he says.
Regarding the justice system, this reform aims, according to him, to further independence of the courts in issuing decisions
“The rule of law is not understood without justice and its institutions. We who had the vision and courage to carry out the biggest, most historic justice reform ever undertaken, consider the constitutional pillars of Albanian justice approved in 2016 to be sacred. We also have the obligation to reflect on how the reform has progressed, to reflect on changes with the aim of reflecting on possible problems.
Citizens positively evaluate what the new justice system is demonstrating. Meanwhile, citizens who have invested high trust deserve better access to the justice system, better management of the system, professionalism in trials, independence in the delivery of justice. We will support the justice system even more strongly,’ concludes Xhafaj.
