Alliance for Albanians Accuses VLEN of Nepotism: It Did Not Fight It, but Benefited from It

The Alliance for Albanians has accused VLEN of using state institutions to employ relatives and people close to its officials. According to AA, the latest appointments raise suspicions of nepotism and political interference.

In its media statement, the party said that VLEN is prioritising family employment instead of focusing on issues that it says are essential for Albanians.

“VLEN has turned state institutions into employment offices for the relatives and close associates of its officials. In exchange for positions and privileges, its representatives remain silent about the deterioration of the status of Albanians, the Albanian language, fair representation, the gambling law, the bar exam in Albanian and the blocking of the European integration process,” the party said in its statement.

As its latest example, AA cited Mimoza Musa, an MP and vice-president of VLEN. According to its claims, Musa’s father, Arif Musa, despite being retired, has been elected a member of the Supervisory Board of the Development Bank of North Macedonia.

The party stressed that while serving as a member of the State Commission for the Prevention of Corruption, Arif Musa had called for different standards to be applied to appointments in public institutions. “The irony is that Arif Musa, as a former member of the Commission for the Prevention of Corruption, once called for appointments to be reviewed and competitions to be reopened wherever nepotism was found. Today, the same principles should apply to him as well,” AA stressed.

The statement also mentions Nusret Haliti, whom AA identifies as Arif Musa’s nephew and the current acting director of the Agency for Electronic Communications.

“Family favouritism continues with his nephew, Nusret Haliti, who holds the position of director of the Agency for Electronic Communications,” the statement said.

The Alliance for Albanians has called on institutions and the public to clarify the procedures followed for these appointments. “We therefore publicly ask whether there was political influence in these appointments and whether the procedures were transparent and competitive,” AA stated.

In conclusion, AA claims that VLEN has failed to fulfil its pledge to fight nepotism. “VLEN did not fight nepotism. It merely waited its turn to benefit from it,” the Alliance for Albanians’ statement concluded.