Tolerating corruption and rule breakers has become a part of Albanian culture. But there are now signs a new generation of Albanians will no longer put up with it.
TIRANA TIMES EDITORIAL
Corruption and entitlement to break the rules have been one of the ugly features of Albanian society in the past two decades.
We are not only referring to those who are suspected of profiting from use of public posts or those using political connections to act with impunity against public interest — we are talking about the type of corruption and pervasive breaking of the rules that start from students bribing their way to a good grade in school to the driver who decides it is OK to park on the sidewalk forcing pedestrians to walk in the street. The two types of corruption and rule- breakers feed on each other from the top down and vice versa. And, sadly, tolerating corruption and rule breakers of all kinds and levels has been part of
Albanian culture for far too long.
The good news is there are now signs a new generation of Albanians will no longer put up with it. And the faster Albania comes up with a zero-tolerance generation, the easier it will be for the country to move forward in the world. This week, two professors and their
student accomplices were arrested at a public university after police found out they were taking bribes to allow cheating on exams to take place. There were indications those accused of this type of small-scale bribery had been turned into police by students who saw it as unfair to compete for grades today and jobs tomorrow by those who had been given an unfair advantage through bribery.
In another news item that is getting little attention in Albanian media, but quite a bit of views on social media circles, a group of activist cyclists have taken to very public protests of naming and shaming as well as physically blocking drivers who park on bicycle lanes and sidewalks — an ugly example of how the entitlement of the rule- breaker in Albania.
The two news items might not appear important compared to politicians that have been able to evade justice for events that led to the death of innocent people or who are alleged of pocketing hundreds of thousands of euros though abuse of post — but they are part of a larger trend: a young — and often better educated generation — who will no longer sit a listen to idle words of the political class about modernizing Albanian society and moving the country closer to the European Union — while acting to keep the country mired in corruption and weak rule of law.
They do face major hurdles, however. There are now indications, for example, that the government that promised “systemic change” and a “rebirth” is filling the public service with its own political activists in pre-fixed sham competitions, paying little attention to the young professionals vying for the positions through what they believe is a fair competition. And while the political opposition protests such move — it has no sympathy from regular people as it too did the exact same thing eight years ago.
Unless the political class addresses the concerns and it ends its cohabitation with wrongdoers, it too risks becoming irrelevant to the upcoming zero- tolerance generation.
