TIRANA, Sept. 12 – Albania’s parliament has chosen Gramoz Ruci as the legislative body new speaker for the next four years, an election done by secret ballot and that saw Ruci get 80 votes, including at least two from the main opposition Democratic Party.
A perennial lawmaker, Ruci is among the most influential figures of the Socialist Party which, after the June 25 elections, has secured the sole majority control.
However, Ruci’s nomination faced public opposition from the formerly politically persecuted under communism community due to his past involvement in the former communist regime before the 1990s and for serving as an interior minister for several months at the very end of the communist regime.
A group of anti-communist activists held a protest in front of parliament at the vote in Ruci’s favor took place. Another group held a rally at the notorious Spac prison site.
Ruci’s nomination was also opposed by the opposition, both by the Democratic Party, the main right-wing opposition force, and by the Socialist Movement for Integration, the third party in parliament, which has a history of coalitions with both the SP and the DP.
But while the SMI’s 19 MPs boycotted the vote, Democrats did vote and the numbers showed at least two MPs defied party orders and voted for Ruci.
After the vote, the DP parliamentary group joined the protest happening outside.
DP leader Lulzim Basha called Ruci’s nomination a provocation by Prime Minister Rama.
“This is a provocation to the memory and blood of the 4 martyrs of April 2 [1991 protest] and hundreds of Shkodra citizens wounded by the communist beasts’ firearms and a provocation against hundreds of thousands of politically persecuted people who have not yet received what they deserve,” Basha said.
However, faced with the secret defection of at least two lawmakers, DP quickly engaged in an internal debate.
DP lawmaker Ervin Salianji said the results of the parliament’s vote on Ruci were manipulated, as no DP MPs could have voted for the man. However, DP former leader Sali Berisha said MPs likely sold their votes.
The DP issued a press statement on Sunday condemning the two votes Ruci got from its parliamentary group. They said if ever found who voted in Ruci’s favour, the two lawmakers would be expelled from the party.
The DP said it was angry because it saw Ruci as a symbol of the bloody communist past and a showcase of ties between politics and trafficking criminal groups. The DP has repeatedly said Ruci is banned from traveling to the United States due to such ties.
The U.S. ambassador did not participate in the session that saw Ruci sworn in, an unusual behavior for the top U.S. diplomat, interpreted as a protest in Albanian media.
However, Prime Minister Rama dismissed criticism over his choice of Ruci saying the new speaker was a very experienced MP who is fully equipped for the position and who would help improve the quality of parliamentary proceedings.
In a statement on social media Rama said he was confident that Ruà§i would be the guarantor of the ruling majority-opposition coexistence. He also said he was unhappy with what he said was “the opposition’s mudslinging attacks against Ruci.”
