TIRANA, July 24 /ATA/-By Maela Marini/ Prime Minister and Socialist Party leader Edi Rama said today that those who protested on the Boulevard in June are not ungrateful, but rather represent the new benchmark for measuring standards.
At a joint meeting of the parliamentary group and the government cabinet, Rama addressed the protest held in June against the investment project in Zvërnec.
Rama stressed that during June the boulevard was filled with people from all walks of life, representing different social groups and generations, while a rare, beautiful, and fragile bird became the symbol of the greatest global attention Albania has ever experienced within a single month.
“I have brought with me two documents that reflect my thoughts following the lessons drawn from the ‘flamingo boulevard’ moment. Both are open to review, discussion, and changes to ensure they fully achieve their intended objectives. The first is a strategic document outlining the changes that the fourth government mandate must deliver, while the second is an annex detailing how the Socialist Party should support this transformation during its fourth term,” Rama said.
The Prime Minister highlighted the case of a mayor who reacted with indignation to a protest organised by a group of citizens.
“On one of those days in June, a fellow mayor — someone who is committed to his work and his community — came to me extremely frustrated with a group of citizens who had protested over an issue in their neighbourhood on the outskirts of the municipality. He told me: ‘I found them living in terrible conditions; they had no roads, no pavements, and lighting was out of the question. I provided roads, pavements, streetlights, trees, transformed the area into a garden, and even added benches, but they are ungrateful,’” Rama recalled.
However, according to the Prime Minister, “this very word — ungrateful — is precisely the starting point for the new perspective we need, because it reflects the most mistaken understanding of the new phase that Albania has entered.”
“Therefore, I want to say this to those who took to the boulevard in June, as well as to those who have raised their concerns quietly, without a public voice, individually or collectively, across Albania and abroad — not only during June but since last year’s elections: You are not ungrateful; you are the new benchmark for our standards.
The people who filled the boulevard were not protesting against the Albania we built during our first three terms in office. Even those who worked in public administration during the day and joined the demonstrations in the evening did not come to the ‘flamingo boulevard’ to attack the government or to join the call for ‘Rama to step down,’” Rama said.
/j.p/sm/
