Socialist Mayor of Divjakë Opposes Merger with Lushnje: I Feel Betrayed, We Will Defend Our Municipality

Divjakë Mayor Josif Gorrea has opposed the Socialist Party’s proposal for Territorial Reform, under which the municipality he leads would be merged with the Municipality of Lushnje.

During a protest with residents, the Socialist mayor said the news that Divjakë had been included on the list of municipalities to be dissolved had come as a “bombshell,” adding that he felt betrayed by the way the proposal was made public.

“As a citizen, just like you, I am truly surprised, even though I should have been better informed because of my political position. But it also came as a bombshell to me when I saw the Municipality of Divjakë on the list,” Gorrea said.

Gorrea said discussions about a new territorial reform had been taking place for some time, but, according to him, the proposal made public does not meet the criteria for a genuine reform.

According to the mayor of Divjakë, one of the main criteria cited in discussions about the reform was population size, while he maintains that the municipality he leads does not meet the criteria for dissolution.

“The main principle was population size, and I have slept soundly because our municipality has 56,000 residents and ranks 26th. Therefore, 27 municipalities would have to be dissolved before it was our turn,” Gorrea said.

Josif Gorrea: I thank you for taking part in this rally over this news that came as a bombshell to us. I thought they themselves would speak here, but everyone has the right to express themselves as they feel. As a citizen, just like you, I am truly surprised, even though I should have been better informed because of my political position. But it also came as a bombshell to me when I saw the Municipality of Divjakë there as one of the municipalities that would be merged.

I believe we are here for one purpose, and our shared goal is to defend our municipality, which belongs to extraordinary people, the hardest-working in the republic. This is a place where people work 365 days a year. To tell the truth, I feel betrayed because this bombshell came without any warning.

In fact, this government initiative has been discussed for some time. The Territorial Reform Commission, representing both sides of the political spectrum, has examined options for how to proceed with this reform, but unfortunately, what happened yesterday cannot be called reform, as far as I am concerned. Why?

Because the main principle was population size, and I have slept soundly because our municipality has 56,000 residents and ranks 26th. Therefore, 27 municipalities would have to be dissolved before it was our turn. According to the census as well, the municipality has a large number of residents who live and work here. There are 25,000 residents, although we have doubts about that figure. Nevertheless, 25,000 is the number accepted by the Albanian government, and it is very high.