TIRANA, Sept. 14 – The former long-time leader of the Democratic Party, Sali Berisha, told an online television session this week that the Democrats loss in the last parliamentary elections was “very bitter” and that it was due in part to bad choices of his hand-picked successor, Lulzim Basha.
Berisha was particularly critical of Basha’s choices for the list of the June 25 elections and of Basha’s purge from the party of key historical DP figures – both choices that had a cost at the polling booth.
Berisha said Basha’s choice to bypass the party’s forums and decision-making structures was also something that must not be repeated if the party hopes to return to power.
Widely seen as still having a lot of influence behind the scene, Berisha repeatedly said he had no direct input in the choices Basha had made.
Berisha said Prime Minister Edi Rama had been able to take advantage of an agreement with Basha ahead of the elections and of the idea of a post-election DP-SP grand coalition, which served to alienate a considerable number of DP voters into not going to the polls at all.
Berisha also said Basha had not been able to get more undecided voters by turning the opposition into a popular movement rather than simply an activist group.
