TIRANA, June 25  /ATA/ Today’s meeting of the Conference of Speakers was marked by tensions between the governing majority and the opposition over a request by the Democratic Party for a debate motion on recent citizen protests and their demands, as well as on the latest European Parliament report on Albania.

The head of the Democratic Party parliamentary group, Gazment Bardhi, said the majority is seeking to avoid a parliamentary debate on the European Parliament’s latest report on Albania.

According to Bardhi, the report contains criticism of the government over corruption, tailor-made legislation, political protection of officials accused of corruption, and media freedom.

Bardhi accused the government of avoiding parliamentary debate on the European Parliament report, arguing that it is critical rather than positive, and says it highlights issues such as corruption, clientelist laws, political protection of officials, and concerns over media freedom.

Meanwhile, MP Tabaku described parliament as out of touch with the reality of citizen protests. Tabaku said the protests, which have continued for 25 days, have raised concerns that are now also reflected in discussions and documents of the European Parliament, including issues related to corruption, the economy, elections, and public property management.

She urged the governing majority to listen to the demands of protesters and not downplay their concerns.

“The voice of this protest has reached the European Parliament, and their concerns have become part of the latest European Parliament reports. The protesters speak about the difficult economic situation, a concern that has also been raised by our European partners. They have also spoken about laws that treat public property as a tool for corruption. You have the strategic investments law, which you have been extending for 10 years. Meanwhile, you have no real strategic investments, only so-called investors who are your clients. Therefore, listen to the voice of the protesters and stop attacking them,” she said.

Opposition MP Tedi Blushi called for an urgent parliamentary debate with Prime Minister Edi Rama on protesters’ demands, urging the government to listen to citizens.

On the other hand, the head of the Socialist Party parliamentary group, Taulant Balla, rejected the opposition’s request, arguing that it does not meet the criteria set out in the parliamentary rules and the constitution.

He said the submitted request is not based on Article 98, and suggested that the opposition could instead invoke Article 101 to table a motion of no confidence, while also proposing a new prime minister.

Referring to the opposition’s protest, Taulant Balla accused opposition MPs of distorting the protesters’ demands and speaking on their behalf without legitimacy.

“Why are you distorting the protesters’ demands? You say there are five demands, but only one of them is consistent with what has been publicly stated. The fall of the government, a caretaker government, the law on political parties, and others are distortions of the protest’s demands,” Balla said.

He added that the opposition cannot be considered representative of the protesters, also casting doubt on the organisation of the protest.

“We do not recognise you as representatives of the protest. You are not the leadership of the protest. We have seen your protests and we know what you are capable of. Therefore, we do not accept you at all as representatives of the protest,” said Taulant Balla.

Finally, he also referred to procedural limitations on parliamentary interpellations, stressing that two interpellations on the same issue cannot be held within the same parliamentary session.

“You are aware that Article 89, which regulates Q&A sessions, does not allow two interpellations on the same issue within a single parliamentary session. You may withdraw and reformulate your request,” concluded Taulant Balla.

The Conference of Speakers failed to reach an agreement on the motion, leaving the decision to the plenary session.

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