TIRANA, May 31 /ATA/-By Arbi Fortuzi/ – Efforts to strike a deal in the Political Council on the electoral reform ended without comprehensive agreement following a four-hour meeting in the presence of international partners late on Sunday evening.
The Co-chair of the Special Commission of the Electoral Reform, Damian Gjiknuri, told reporters that ruling majority has accommodated a good part of the most serious opposition demands and voiced confidence that the electoral code will be adopted during this parliamentary session.
Gjiknuri noted that most of the demands from the non-parliamentary opposition were accepted, but the latter started to backtrack and tabling fresh demands.
“I should inform the public first that all over this time, both the Parliamentary Committee on the Electoral Reform and the Political Council have seriously treated the OSCE recommendations and the problems presented by the parties and they have tried to address a good part of the opposition demands. As of today, we have an almost completed framework with the OSCE requirements and where a part of the opposition demands will be included, but we cannot agree on certain demands and then more new demands. We will not lose temper and I will follow legal procedures to inform Parliament, the Commission on Electoral Reform, as well as the international partners,” Gjiknuri told reporters after the meeting.
The non-parliamentary opposition representatives, namely the Democratic Party representative Oerd Bylykbashi, and Petrit Vasili from the Socialist Movement for Integration, said that the ruling majority was not ready to give up “its privileges” in the electoral process.
“After several hours of efforts, the opposition tabled its proposals. It offered consensus. Socialist Party was not ready to reach this consensus, seeking to maintain its privileges. We are ready to go on working and find the consensus and we expect also SP to make its concessions and be ready to reach an agreement,” Bylykbashi said.
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