Democratic Party Parliamentary Group Chairman Gazment Bardhi has again opposed the Socialist Party’s initiative to reorganize the country’s territorial divisions and merge 15 municipalities.
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In his response, Bardhi revisited a statement by Belinda Balluku, a Socialist Party MP and the party’s political leader in Fier County. Just a few months ago, she said that no municipalities in the county would be merged, singling out Divjakë and Patos for their strong performance.
“As the political leader of Fier County, I must say that it is important for us to preserve them because the two small municipalities—in the case of Patos—have full financial performance and have no debts to local government. They are municipalities with a strong identity and cannot be merged into larger municipalities,” Balluku said at the time.
According to Bardhi, just two months after that statement, the Socialist Party Parliamentary Group officially submitted a proposal to merge two of Fier County’s six municipalities: Patos and Divjakë. He stressed that Divjakë does not even meet the criteria set by the Socialist Party’s own experts.
The head of the DP Parliamentary Group accused the majority and Belinda Balluku of deceiving citizens and failing to honor their pledge. At the same time, he called on Socialist MPs from Fier County not to vote in favor of the proposal.
“On May 12, 2026, just two months ago, Belinda Balluku and the Socialist Party MPs in Fier County promised citizens that all six municipalities in the county would be preserved. Their argument was that these municipalities have full financial performance and a strong institutional and historical identity that does not justify merging or incorporating them into larger municipalities,” Bardhi said.
He continued that, after just two months, the Socialist Party had proposed merging the municipalities of Patos and Divjakë, even though Divjakë does not meet the standards drawn up by the party’s own experts.
“The facts are clear: Belinda Balluku and the MPs from Fier County deceived the citizens. They did not keep their promise. Today they remain silent, while citizens, regardless of their political views, are reacting and protesting against this proposal,” Bardhi stated.
According to him, it would take only two MPs from Fier County voting against the measure to defeat the proposal to merge the municipalities of Patos and Divjakë. Bardhi said responsibility for this decision lies with the MPs and that they cannot evade it.
He also stressed that the Democratic Party Parliamentary Group is committed to preserving the six existing municipalities, as well as creating the new local government units of Ardenicë, Krutje, Dushk, Levan, Cakran and Fratar.
“Unlike the Socialist Party, the Democratic Party Parliamentary Group pledged not only to preserve all six existing municipalities but also to convey the citizens’ voice through its proposal to create new municipalities: Ardenicë, Krutje, Dushk, Levan, Cakran and Fratar. We kept our word,” Bardhi wrote.
He added that the DP’s proposal protects the six existing municipalities and supports the creation of new ones, in line with the demands of Fier County residents.
“Now is the time for the MPs from Fier County to be held accountable and honor the promise they made to citizens. They must vote against the merger of their municipalities and choose to represent the citizens’ interests rather than carry out political orders,” Bardhi concluded.
