Berisha Meets With Ceka Trying To Enlarge Coalition

TIRANA, May 21 – Prime Minister Sali Berisha met Tuesday with Neritan Ceka of the Democratic Alliance Party, currently part of the opposition coalition led by the Socialists. Ceka has formerly been a close collaborator when he was with Berisha’s Democrats in the early 1990s. Both leaders said the meeting was a friendly one, not focused on any typical issue.
However, observers believe this is another effort by Berisha to widen his coalition with a partner at a time when Ceka and his center-right party seem to be out of place in the left-leaning coalition.
Ceka also said the meeting did not mean he was looking for a ministerial post in case of a collaboration with Berisha’s Democrats in next year’s general elections.
However, for smaller political parties like Ceka’s, securing a post at the parliament is also very important.
The new regional proportional electoral system will make it hard for smaller parties to have posts in the parliament unless they cooperate with each other or with the two larger parties. (Tirana Times Staff)