Arben Cici, diplomatic advisor to Albania’s President, is one of the authors of an urban massacre. He has threatened and offended the residents of the area, using his position of an advisor to the Head of State.
The diplomatic advisor, who you might have often seen on TV next to the Head of State, believes that the fact that he works in the cabinet of the President allows him to break the law.
Three months ago, the advisor decided against the law to enlarge his apartment in the ground floor by building an extension in the common garden of the building. The diplomatic adviser answered with disregard and arrogance the request of the inhabitants to stop this illegal construction. After this behavior, which was anything but diplomatic, the inhabitants contacted law enforcement officials. On May 28, the Construction and Urban Inspectorate intervened demolishing the illegal extension of the presidential advisor.
This advisor became two times the offender of law when he started to build again. In a scene not at all dignified for an employee of the public administration and no less for an advisor to the Head of State, the advisor threatened and offended the inhabitants of the building, saying: “Do you know who I work for? I am the advisor of the President and you will see what will happen. Do you think you can stop the man of the President?” In fact, the residents of the area cannot stop him, but the law can, even though he breaks it by using as a shield the name of the President.
It is definitely against any logic that President Topi would have given permission to one of his employees to break the law, at least for two reasons. Firstly, because the President or whoever, however rich or high in the hierarchy of power he is, cannot be above the law. And secondly, President Topi is one of the few for whom there is no evidence of infringement or encouragement for infringement in all his political life.
It is evident that the advisor wants to use the name of the Head of State to be feel free to break the law, and surely the President is not informed that one of his employees uses and abuses not only his position, but also the name of the President for illegal profit. This newspaper will offer room in its pages for an eventual clarification by the Press Office of the President.
How Arben Cici abuses the name of the Head of State
The case of Arben Cici, an employee that openly violates the law and threatens citizens pretending to be a tough guy with political backing, is not rare in the Albanian administration. It is nothing new to Albanians that bodyguards, advisors, and all kind of ‘helpers’ of high state officials behave with arrogance and are ready to disrespect the law for their interests, use their position for illegal profit and also use the name of their bosses to save themselves from punishment.
But the case in question, that of Arben Cici, is flagrant for two reasons: firstly, this civil servant works for the Head of the State and with a dreadful easiness not only breaks the law for illegal benefits, but for breaking the laws he uses the name of the President. Secondly, it is incredibly frightful to notice that this person not only uses the name of the President as a shield to avoid the law, but he also uses the same name to offend with arrogance and to threaten with physical violence. And to think that this employee is the diplomatic advisor of the Head of State. Such advisors, bodyguards and helpers are a typical phenomenon for post-communist Albania and testify the low level of law enforcement.
As the public administration is kept up with citizens’ taxes, it is supposed to serve the citizens. Because having qualified and dedicated civil servants means that there exist procedures and laws that are not broken, but respected. The citizens in this country have forgiven and can continue forgiving the mediocre and incompetent employees that are recruited in the administration. That’s the case too for counselors, bodyguards or similar types, notably in the case of mediocre employees for which the civil servants law does not forbid employment. If we forgive civil servants for their mediocrity and incompetence, this does not mean that we are ready to forgive them for their arrogance and the violation of law.
