Addressing a campaign rally in the town of Peqin on Saturday, Berisha claimed that the average pension is 172 euros, slightly up from 143 euros in 2013, while consumer prices have doubled, criticizing the Socialist government of Prime Minister Edi Rama for abandoning pensioners.

He said that Socialist government has proposed a 8-billion euro state budget for 2025, allocating only 16 million euros for over 760 000 retirees across Albania.

“When we proposed setting a minimum living wage of 200 euros, PM Rama said the country could plunge into the abyss because of this proposal. Albanian officials currently receive the highest wages in the Balkans. The difference between the minimum wage and the highest wage is around 15 times, like in no other country on the planet. That’s why I stand before you today to unite and vote for the change,” Berisha said.

According to opposition leader, Albanian farmers lack the government support and are unable to compete against farmers from North Macedonia, Kosovo and Serbia.

He claimed that Albania imports around 80% of the agricultural products, fruits and vegetable, while Albanian farmers destroy their locally grown produce as they can’t cope with the competition due to the lack of government support and subsidies. He explained that the DP’s electoral program brings together best practices of the neighbouring countries.

Berisha pledged a minimum living wage of 200 euros, a minimum salary of 500 euros, and an average salary of 1,250 euros, if the main opposition party wins the elections.

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The opposition leader visited an apparel manufacturing factory in the coastal city of Durres to unveil the DP governing program, promising sweeping tax cuts and economic reforms.

Berisha said that DP’s “Made in Albania” program focuses on all efforts to support domestic production, vowing utmost support to ensure success of Albanian entrepreneurs.

“We should ease fiscal burden and protect exports,” Berisha said, pledging to provide full compensation for the losses because of the depreciation of the European single currency.

According to him, the euro depreciation by 35% in the domestic market has had destructive effects on Albanian businesses and exporters, promising to create a board to stabilize the euro-to-lek exchange rate immediately after coming to power.

“In this context, a special board will be founded to monitor the exchange rate fluctuations and compensate every entrepreneur, until the law scissors cut the cocaine routes and proceedings that Albanian economy doesn’t need,” Berisha added.

He also vowed to cut the electricity price to only six lek, saying Albanian businesses will pay the lowest electricity rate in Europe.

Berisha also announced plans to approve a stable fiscal code within the first three months of governance, guaranteeing no tax increases for four years, with key proposals including a 10% flat tax rate on capital and income (excluding the first 50,000 Lek), a reduction in VAT to 15%, a decrease in the infrastructure tax to 2%, and the abolition of a social housing tax.

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McAllister was present at the online conference “State of the Union 2021″, organized by the Institute of the European University in Florence, Italy, which was also attended by Prime Minister Edi Rama.

Speaking online from Brussels, McAllister said, “We often talk about the results that the Western Balkan countries that want to become members should show. But, I also want to talk about the responsibility of the EU. It is our credibility which depends on our ability to function as efficiently as a community, of course based on some values ​​and rules agreed upon jointly. And not just inside the EU, but also outside it, without double standards,” McAllister said.

“What I see critically are the delays in fulfilling those promises that have been made by the EU member states themselves. This does not help the credibility, collectively of the EU. And here I want to mention the promise made to Kosovo for visa-free movement, visa liberalization, as well as the promise to start negotiations with North Macedonia and Albania,” said McAllister.

So, he added, “We too must show our results, we must keep our promises. And I very much hope that in this mandate we will continue by opening other chapters with Serbia and Montenegro and then the opening of negotiations with North Macedonia and Albania.”/a.a/r.e/p.s./

In his greeting speech, Basha said that 4 more days separate us from the greatest victory in the history of Albania.

The leader of the opposition guaranteed all the residents that for 8 years they were lied to by the promise of free legalizations and listened to Edi Rama’s plan to take their vote, to demolish 100 thousand Albanian houses without compensation, but it will end with the vote for number 9 on April 25th.

“8 years of failures, 8 years of stagnation in the country, 8 years of isolation, did not even finish the road they found ready with a project and financing Qukës-Qaf Plloç, now they go from village to village to promise airports. These are the last days because on Sunday we return Korça to the people of Korça, we return Albania to the Albanians. These miserable years have caused endless suffering. They have been great challenges for Albanian families and in particular for our mothers, for our sisters, our wives, our daughters and the youth who have felt in their hearts the pain of leaving our best sons in emigration, who have suffered unemployment, who have suffered the impossibility of schooling and education of their children and then their employment with dignity”, said Basha.

“Well, after eight years of failures, eight years of evil lies they again take the courage to knock on the doors, on the noble gates of Korça and the people of Korça”, stressed Basha./j.p/p.s./

“Lulzim Basha promises he would provide money to everyone, just like fraud schemes’ boss Xhaferri once did, while the Socialist government promises only new jobs,” PM Rama said in his remarks at an electoral meeting with local residents in Tirana’s administrative unit No. 1.

PM Rama recalled that opposition leader made similar promises during the municipal elections in 2011.

“I can recall two spectacular promises about building Tirana tramway and to cut the bread price. These were two bold promises and he is doing the same now, pledging he would lower the bread price and stuff like this,” PM Rama said, adding that “quite the opposite actually happened as soon as Basha took over office as Tirana Mayor and he kept none of the promises.

“And what ensued was that Tirana and Tirana citizens wasted four years with the trash-littered streets and neighbourhoods, destroyed roads, schools and kindergartens that degraded and were abandoned to their fate,” PM Rama said.

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During a meeting with the youth of Gramsh, Prime Minister Edi Rama stated this Monday that in front of us we have the difficult path of climbing, or the tempting miraculous recipes where money is distributed like in the time of the pyramid schemes of Sude and Xhaferri.

“This is a test of character, not just for the Socialist Party, but April 25 is a test of character for all of us, for our entire community. It is a test of character for all Albanians, it is a test of character to decide to continue climbing with effort and sacrifice, acknowledging that we will make mistakes, and we will stumble, we will fall, but we will climb and climb again, or we will fall short and accept the miraculous recipes, where the money will be distributed affluently”, – said Rama

“So many thousands of euros for a student, so many thousands of euros for a young couple, even more thousands of euros for an entrepreneur, even more thousands of euros for older couples, thousands and thousands of euros for each pensioner. We have heard these, and we have heard them. You are young, but ask your parents. You were young then, now you have grown up, but your parents heard from the bosses of the pyramid schemes and if those recipes worked we would have seen them from others, from more developed countries”, – said Rama.

“Nothing falls from the sky except rain, and nothing rises from the earth except through sweat, sacrifice and work,” Rama said.

“In all of Albania today, there is no farmer who says that crops fall from the sky,” said Rama./p.s./

Basha was also stopped by the citizens while one of them asked him not to promise what he doesn’t deliver.

“I have only one request. Please, do not promise anything that you do not do,” he said.

“You have not heard any promise and you will not hear any from me. Only commitments and plans have long been made by specialists. No campaign promise is valid. Only plans that have been drafted for a long time by specialists are valid”, said Basha./r.e/p.s./

Basha said that, “The main problem is that the government, which has the main task of helping people in such times, has left everyone alone. It has left alone family members, patients, businesses, small business, it has left alone the manufacturing business and all tax money has gone into the pockets of 10 oligarchs.”

“I guarantee you that on April 25, with your vote, this will change. As you know, in North Macedonia the 5th aid package is being given, while since September we had asked the government to help small businesses with a check of 1000 Euros”, he said.

Basha added that, “The first thing that will be done is that the small business will have an anti-COVID support package, what we asked them to do and they did not do. But, we will do in reality”.

“We will make it possible that the tax do not exceed 0.5% on the businesses with a turnover under 14 million Lek,” said Basha.

Basha added that all those who have made expenses to get treated from Covid, should be reimbursed, will be helped financially to at least be able to pay the minimum food expenses./p.s./

Through a video message, Basha says that after 8 years of failures and unkept promises, it is time for Rama to leave. “It is time to build a better future for all Albanian citizens,” he said.

“8 years of unkept promises, 8 years of failures. Albania has come to a standstill. Your families are mired in the mud, because of Rama’s failures. No promise has been kept! He comes up with yet more promises. A prime minister who does not deliver on his promises must leave. We have serious and viable plans at hand for the country. Commitments that we will start to implement from day one. And our first commitment is: If we do not fulfill our commitments to you, we will not seek another term.”

“It is high time to stick together to change Albania,” Basha said.
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At a news briefing, Basha said that he expresses his heartfelt wishes to all political forces, institutions, citizens of Kosovo on their flawless election process up to the European standards, a model for Albania and the entire Balkans. It is an extraordinary achievement of the citizens of Kosovo, of the Republic of Kosovo,” he said.

“Kosovo has great challenges ahead, so I wish the election winners Albin Kurti and Vjosa Osmani, the Self-Determination Movement, but also other political parties to rise to the challenges that lie ahead of them. I am confident that they will do everything in their capacity to live up to the expectations of Kosovo citizens and address the challenges in order for Kosovo to continue its irreversible journey towards Euro-Atlantic integration and its socio-economic development. I guarantee that today and even more vehemently tomorrow after the April 25 elections, the Democratic Party and I will be by their side to cooperate as strongly as possible for the benefit of the economy, development and employment of the citizens of our two countries,” he said.

Basha also touched on developments in the country, emphasizing that only yesterday he had listed 9 promises of Edi Rama with which he asked for the vote and Albanians remember very well some of them, 300 thousand jobs, free health care, free legalization of unauthorized constructions, reduction of taxes for 97% of citizens, abolition of VAT on bread, eggs, milk, reduction of the living cost and much more.

“He has not apologized for not meeting even a single promise in these 8 years when he had control over all powers but comes up with other senseless promises. Only propaganda, no promises kept. Only failures. As a result, Albania’s economic growth has stalled. The vast majority of Albanians are poorer than before, have less money to spend than before, unemployment has increased, youth unemployment in particular has become a major scourge which translates into emigration. Albania has stalled while all the neighboring countries have made progress”, said Basha.

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