Meta determined to abandon opposition Socialists

TIRANA, March 6 – Former Socialist Prime Minister Ilir Meta, now leader of the other opposition Socialist Movement for Integration, was determined to start the new political fight to get power next year separate from the main opposition Socialist party of the Tirana Mayor Edi Rama.
Meta said bluntly that it was Rama who had secretly negotiated with governing Democratic Party leader and Prime Minister Sali Berisha to take the small political parties out of the way.
In response Meta and his party started to ‘grab’ members of the Socialist Party who turn into their members.
Socialists on their side counterattacked saying that Meta has always been focused on getting the premier’s job when they win the general elections.
The newly-found leftist coalition The Left for Integration created by Meta and other smaller parties will likely cause the same effect as three years ago: leave many parliament seats to the governing Democrats. The fight of Meta and other smaller arties started on the electoral reform. The main ones, that is Socialists and Democrats, would be in favor of a proportional regional package with closed lists of candidates. The smaller parties want open lists and have different versions on the electoral system.
All the political class in the country agrees that next general elections in 2009 should be according to the international standards, which is also a precondition set from the international community while the country looks for membership into NATO and later the European Union. (Tirana Times Staff)