The government decision to remove the photo of the country’s head of state from government offices is the wrong decision at the wrong time.
In its first meeting last week, Albania’s new government took three decisions: Ban all waste imports, bind all ministers to an ethical code – and replace the photo of the country’s president, Bujar Nishani, in all state offices with that of the country’s founding father, Ismail Qemali Vlora.
While most Albanians will not argue against the first two decisions, this newspaper believes that removing the photo of the country’s head of state from government offices – on the first government meeting no less נis a wrong decision at the wrong time. It is also petty. And we expect better from a government that has come to power with the promise of a different approach to politics.
Our opposition to the government’s decision is based on common sense and constitutional respect for the country’s presidency as an institution. Whether or not one likes or agrees with Mr. Nishani as a person or as a political actor, we believe that one must respect the office he holds.
In fact, in an editorial at the time of Mr. Nishani’s election, we noted that there would have been better choices and expressed concern particularly due to the fact that he was not a consensual head of state. It is clear Mr. Nishani is seen by a large part of the population, mostly Socialist supporters, as not the unifying figure that a head of state should be, but rather a political appointee of the Democratic Party, which is now in opposition. Nonetheless, Mr. Nishani is the legitimately chosen president of the country, and his photo belongs in government buildings, as was the case with all his predecessors – whether they agreed with the prime minister’s policies or not – and they often did not.
It is not that the new government’s decision came as a surprise. The fact that they intended to place the photo of the country’s founding father and first head of state in government officers was in fact a campaign pledge. And no Albanian will object to having Ismail Qemali Vlora’s portrait in government offices, as the man who led the group of patriots that declared independence in 1912 is one of the few unifying figures this country has. But his portrait could have been added in addition to Mr. Nishani’s photo, instead of replacing it. By simply using one portrait to replace the other, the government’s PR department is clearly trying to put a positive spin on a spiteful decision. And it doesn’t make it right.
Unfortunately this is not the only photo war currently underway in Albania. The new government has taking to publishing photos of the poor state it has found government buildings. The opposition has taken to publishing its own set of photos. Certainly many government building are a mess, but the image war is cheap. The work to accomplish real goals is hard, and everyone involved should wrap their sleeves and start painting. Documentation of all the work done can take place later, not before it has even started.
The new government has many challenges ahead and it deserves the Albanians’ benefit of the doubt for several months, so we can gage its ability to tackle Albania’s problems. But one thing is for sure, it won’t do so with the photos it puts up on the wall.
