By Henri ȩli
The very least that could be said about Damir Faslic, the person who has been making the headlines in the Albanian written media for days now, is how shady a character he is. The structure of the answers he gave in his interview on the talk show “Opinion”, the structure of his very own “Top-Story” becomes even shadier with the possibility that Faslic could be “a suspect,” in other words someone who may have broken the law, but this remains to be proven by the relevant authorities in the days to come. What could be said off the cuff is what is obvious. Here we have an individual who has managed to slip through the cracks of a local and international system and has made about 50 million in Albania since 2005! There are no indications of a very successful business or a lottery windfall!
There is at least one thing that also indicates the existence of a Faslic racket, and that is the transition of our political life to a new moment, in which the world of politics and that of capital proclaimed their open bonds, clearly. Perhaps, in the final account, this was a good thing, because after a phase of principles, after a phase of misunderstanding and misinterpretation of liberal democracy, perhaps we need to look fairly and squarely at and admit to several realities. Damir Faslic slammed some of these realities at us in his interview. This outlandish young man of the Balkans, who travels the world, who, one moment is behind the scenes of the electoral campaign of the party that won the general elections in 2005 in Albania, and next is seen in official meetings at the side of the former US Secretary for National Security, or sitting opposite the Prime Minister of Albania, sometimes wearing the hat of an investor, then the hat of a broker or even as a purchaser of his own companies etc.
As the full cycle of the Faslic story is run, from the day he appeared amongst the teams or groups of assistants in BG&R’s election campaign, which helped bring the Democratic Party to office in 2005, and right up to the moment of a few days ago when, having safely boarded his private jet Faslic managed to slip through the fingers of the Albanian Prosecution which had issued instructions for him to be held for questioning before leaving Albania – the thing that comes to light is the fact that Albanian politics has entered the stage of calculating interests between international and local players, of politics and business. This has now become a public fact, as against previously being a fact that was not for public consumption and which, in itself, raises several questions and question marks on the future of this model towards which we are heading.
What is absolutely unbearable about Faslic’s televised confession and about other accompanying circumstances is the effort to describe Faslic’s activity linked with Albania as “lobbyism” generated by political passions. In this context, the “Faslic-story” discredits lobbyism, which in itself, is vital for liberal democracy, for its development in this country and all over the world. Just as disgusting and unbearable is the almost “folkloric” treatment of this episode by the Opposition of the Majko-Bra襠ilk, who scream their heads off about “Serbia sitting cross-legged on Albania” and so on, when the whole affair revolves around nothing but money!
Faslic and his activities do not represent anything, in particular no kind of lobby. This individual represents no-one but himself, he does not represent any decision-making center, no international organization, economic grouping or formation, in whose name he could act or coordinate affairs with local players, beginning with the Prime Minister of the country, to change anything in the dynamics of the development of the country or of its international relations. As a businessman, he is more than insignificant to be regarded as a player in the evolution of the business climate or in the development perspectives of Albania.
Not only does Faslic not represent anyone, but he does not even stand for an idea or conceptual structure, of the kind that could set up coordination with local players to influence changes in the country’s situation. As an enthusiast of politics, business or democracy in Albania, what legislation, what reforms, what amendments to the Rules has Faslic been lobbying for?
He has lobbied for nothing of this kind. With no representation, no ideas and no cause, Faslic is something fabricated in the corridors of this Ruling Majority and its annexes, something to make money through wheeling and dealing. And this is exactly how he should be dealt with by the State and the Law, by the political opposition and the media. Beyond a shadow of a doubt, in liberal democracy, Faslic is certainly not an episode of lobbying.
