Hamza warns of a new phase of PDK action to restore legality

Bedri Hamza, chairman of the Democratic Party of Kosovo, announced that, starting today, the PDK will enter a new phase of political, institutional and legal engagement, with the aim of restoring legality and the constitutional order in the country. He said the party would not accept the continuation of constitutional violations.

Speaking in the Assembly hall, Hamza said that PDK lawmakers had for weeks called for the continuation of the constitutive session, the implementation of the Constitution, respect for the decisions of the Constitutional Court and the Rules of Procedure of the Assembly.

According to him, in a democratic state, it should not be necessary to demand respect for the Constitution, the decisions of the Constitutional Court and the Rules of Procedure of the Assembly, or to ensure that lawmakers elected by citizens are able to exercise their mandate.

Hamza assessed that the developments that have unfolded have gone beyond an ordinary political disagreement. He said this was not a conflict between the PDK and Vetëvendosje, nor between him and Albin Kurti, but a confrontation between an authoritarian form of exercising power and the constitutional order of the Republic of Kosovo.

He stressed that the Constitution, court decisions and the obligations of institutions cannot be treated by those in power according to political interests. Hamza said that in a democracy, the Constitution cannot be violated even when someone disagrees with it, just as a decision of the Constitutional Court cannot be ignored. He also said that the finding of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Kosovo that a lawmaker cannot simultaneously hold the position of minister cannot be bypassed.

The PDK chairman criticized the scheduling of the continuation of the constitutive session for September 9, stating that the 30-day deadline had also been violated, which, according to him, had been set by Vetëvendosje itself. He added that the Assembly of Kosovo cannot wait for the calculations of one party, as it is an institution of the Republic of Kosovo.

According to Hamza, the institutions of the Republic must not remain hostage to the interests of a party or an individual. He said these institutions were established for the state and not for a political entity, emphasizing that Kosovo had paid an extremely high price for its institutions for them to be treated as hostages to someone’s political interests.

Hamza stressed that the PDK would not allow violations of the Constitution to become common practice, court decisions to depend on political will, or a prime minister, regardless of who he is, to determine which institution functions and which does not.

He said the issue in question went beyond the relationship between the opposition and those in power, as it concerned the Republic, the constitutional order, the separation of powers, the authority of the courts and the right of a lawmaker to exercise his mandate. Above all, Hamza said, it concerned the basic democratic principle that power is limited by law and that no one is above it.

The head of the PDK warned that the party’s institutional patience should not be understood as acceptance of illegality. He announced that, starting today, the Democratic Party of Kosovo would reconsider its method of action.

Hamza said the PDK would also consider other forms of political, institutional and legal engagement to bring the country out of this situation and return Kosovo to the path of legality.

In conclusion, he said that the current battle was not being waged for power, but over its limits and respect for the constitutional order. According to Hamza, the issue was not who governs, but how the country is governed: whether governance is carried out according to the Constitution or according to the will of one man.

Hamza announced the beginning of another phase for the PDK, saying that the party would no longer limit itself to merely demanding that legality be respected. He said the PDK would act responsibly and decisively, using all the democratic and institutional means guaranteed by the constitutional order of the Republic of Kosovo to restore legality.