TIRANA, June 28 – Senior ruling Socialist Party MP and former Prime Minister Pandeli Majko has challenged the Albanian opposition and the government, demanding early elections and a referendum on the justice reform on the same day.
Majko, a popular figure in the Socialist Party who was the country’s Prime Minister in the late 1990s during the Kosovo armed conflict with Serbia, argues that Prime Minister Edi Rama cannot leave the country hostage to the opposition’s claims.
The Democrats have warned that if the ruling majority does not approve recommendation 88 of the Venice Commission on the justice reform then snap elections are inevitable.
MP Pandeli Majko says that the Socialist Party must not pass on this threat and take advantage in holding elections and a referendum on the reform on the same day. According to him, Albanian people are not sheep herded based on politicians’ wishes. “There is nothing bolder in politics than doing the wrong thing for the right reason and the country’s interest. This reform requires bravery,” Majko said.
He said the Democrats are not really interested in a referendum, rather than on a political bargain in regards to recommendation 88 of the Venice Commission preventing political impasses. “These are childish games that are fooling the entire public opinion. The referendum is for the people to rule on political differences,” Majko added.
The senior Socialist Party MP called on the opposition to join the call for new elections. “If they are ready, let us invite voters to head to the polls and decide on politics and justice!” he said.
Majko’s comments came after after the opposition’s refusal to vote on the justice reform bill if recommendation 88 over the so-called reserved seats by the Venice Commission is not fully implemented. This recommendation suggests that the opposition is offered the possibility to have a say on nominations in the judiciary system in case of political impasse.
The key political forces have been struggling to reach consensus on the long-awaited justice reform and the constitutional changes requiring 94 votes which the ruling majority does not have on its own. The reform is considered key for the country to open accession talks with the European Commission after Albania was granted EU candidate status in mid-2014.
