TIRANA TIMES
TIRANA, April 25 – President Bamir Topi exploited the Easter celebrations Sunday to call on the country’s political forces be led by the Easter message and to follow a peaceful electoral campaign. In a statement after visiting Orthodox Archbishop Annastassios Yanoulatos Topi said that the campaign must be conducted peacefully, including all the other stages of the electoral process.
“Those who come and express spiritual reconstruction should do a reconstruction of moral values . We need this campaign to be quiet but also the closing phase must be quiet and to redirect more trust in each other,” said Topi.
Local non-governmental organizations also made the same call to the political groupings noting that campaign-related incidents have created fear and a tense situation ahead of the May 8th elections.
A series of incidents have been noted until last week with political militants referring to violence in many cases, like beating opponents, breaking car glasses or tearing down opposing party flags, in some cases there were also alleged that some explosions at the political candidates were linked with their political affiliation.
“Local elections serve as normal political tests and present occasions in which the ballot casters have the opportunity and the power to bestow the mandate upon a part of the governing political teams and at the concrete case at hand, upon the heads and councils of local units,” said the president in a meeting with local NGOs involved in election monitoring.
Topi said the May 8h elections have the chance to be the last act of the political experiment with the elections and being such it is a significant test for the political parties, for the candidates, for the elections’ administrators and for the institutions or other public and civil groups involved in this process.”
Post-communist Albania has never held elections accepted by everyone and not contested on anything.
He urged the political parties not to manipulate the elections “to behave and act as democratic model institutions.”
“I would like to invite the political parties to not take advantage of bipolar monopoly over the electoral administration Što demonstrate political maturity and willingness in resolving any kind of disagreement through consensus and to search and find meeting points in order to overcome any kind of electoral loophole of debatable provision by standing this way firm above the petty interests and really serving the citizens.”
