TIRANA, Nov 9 /ATA/ “”The fight against corruption is one of our strengths and no one can say that this fight is done by justice but is influenced by the executive.”
This is what Deputy Prime Minister Belinda Balluku said on Thursday during the presentation of the European Commission 2023 Progress Report for Albania.
“The justice reform has been conducted and continues without the slightest interference from the SP, Prime Minister Edi Rama and the Albanian government. This is a fact that no one can deny, and even the progress report referenced the achievements in the justice system, which is the one that should fight corruption,” said Balluku.
In the framework of the justice reform, one of the main mechanisms in the fight against corruption in the judiciary, the evaluation process, over 82% of the members of the justice system have been vetted and 57% of them have left the system by means of resignation or final decisions delivered by relevant vetting bodies.
“SPAK has achieved tangible results in its work, bearing in mind that the chief prosecutor was also elected in the most optimal conditions. SPAK has investigated a number of high-level officials, increasing the number compared to last year. The court against corruption and organized crime has sentenced high-ranking officials by final decision,” said Balluku.
The total of seized assets, Balluku added, which was also cited by Ambassador Soreca as a process that must continue, was 38 million euros compared to a year ago when the value of seized assets was 21 million, recording an increase of 80% as compared to a year ago.
“A year ago, the General Anticorruption Directorate referred 120 cases to the Prosecutor’s Office compared to 12 in 2021 and issued 259 disciplinary measures,” she said.
Balluku said that “we have achieved tangible results as long as we talk about numbers today. This is the first progress report in such a positive spirit, a fact that needs to be echoed by the media either.”
As for the opposition, Balluku said that “our predecessors do not let anyone forget anything. They are turning the chairs of parliament upside down and throwing different firecrackers every day, sometimes pink, sometimes blue. They are present only to remind Albanians every day who was before the Rama government and what they did for the country and what we did for the country, what they did to the justice system and what reform we did and what results it is producing.”
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