TIRANA, Dec 1 /ATA/ – Opposition leader Sali Berisha said on Monday that he supports any prosecutor or judge who enforces the law but will continue to denounce officials whom he alleges have links to crime.
Speaking to reporters after appearing at the Special Anti-Corruption Prosecution Structure (SPAK) as part of a court order that requires him to check in with prosecutors, Democratic Party leader also commented on the ongoing process to select the next special prosecutor. Berisha said he has no favourite but will support any candidate “who has no ties to crime.”
Berisha insisted that his past objections to former SPAK chief Arben Kraja and current head Altin Dumani were “not political attacks but the publication of facts”. He said the justice system includes many honest professionals, but argued that “some senior figures disgrace the system by protecting crime”.
The former prime minister accused SPAK chief Dumani and judge Irena Gjoka of forming “the most discredited duo in the justice system,” alleging that Gjoka falsified disclosures in her vetting, decriminalisation and asset-declaration forms.
He claimed that SPAK has kept the investigation into Gjoka “in a drawer” for 18 months and accused Dumani of opening a “fictitious preliminary inquiry” to shield her from dismissal. Berisha also accused the High Judicial Council (KLGJ) of breaching legal deadlines in reviewing Gjoka’s mandate, calling the situation an “institutional disgrace” and again demanding her immediate removal from the judiciary.
Berisha said several key cases are pending before the Constitutional Court – including those involving Deputy Prime Minister Belinda Balluku and his own case scheduled for 17 December. He said he had previously made political decisions against these officials and announced that later today he would file a new complaint over what he described as an “international scandal” involving the government.
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