While the committee’s agenda included presentation of findings from the special parliamentary commission on territorial reform, opposition MPs called for the draft to be withdrawn, contending it was not the commission’s output but that of a group of deputies.

Democratic Party MP Eno Bozdo stressed that the new territorial map cannot be adopted without public hearings, consultation with communities and political consensus.

“The commission’s work was brutally interrupted by the Socialist Party’s political decision. We did not complete hearings with representatives of local government, the Tirana municipality or stakeholders. Nor did we hear from external experts or communities. Likewise, we were unable to engage experts from both political sides,” Bozdo said.

Bozdo stressed that any draft presented in the name of the commission is a deception, as it is not the product of the territorial reform commission but of a group of deputies. “How can we proceed without asking people and communities what views they hold? We did not even discuss whether funding for local government should be increased, let alone further distorting the map in this way without consulting anyone,” he said.

Bozdo underlined that the bill should be postponed and that procedures for its approval should not begin, warning that otherwise “we harm ourselves.” He added: “We are rushing towards a second reform, even more destructive than that of 2015, which will have economic and social repercussions across the country.”

/sm/