Democratic Party MP and chair of the Committee on Human Rights and Public Information, Jorida Tabaku, said that the European Parliament’s resolutions should be turned into concrete work plans for Albania.
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During the 22nd meeting of the EU–Albania Parliamentary Stabilisation and Association Committee, Tabaku said that the opposition had raised concerns with the European Parliament, the European Commission and other European institutions about at least 17 laws.
Among the issues she mentioned were the KAYO company, tenders in the information technology sector, developments preceding tenders in healthcare, as well as the establishment of the Development Bank and the Investment Corporation.
According to Tabaku, in some cases the Albanian Parliament has passed laws that conflict not only with the Stabilisation and Association Agreement, but also with some of the chapters currently under negotiation by the country.
She described the KAYO case as a concrete example of the restriction of Parliament’s oversight role, stressing that the issue has also created problems in the defence sector.
Tabaku also mentioned the law on strategic investments, which, she said, was included in the European Parliament’s latest resolution.
In the same context, she mentioned the law on protected areas, the Mountain Package and a number of other laws identified by the European Parliament. Tabaku stressed that European resolutions should be used as a basis for drawing up work plans in Albania, while the government’s negotiating positions should not remain political statements but should be incorporated into the daily work of parliamentary committees.
The Democratic MP also addressed the opposition’s ability to exercise parliamentary oversight. She said that the necessary reforms should be comprehensive and involve both political sides.
In this context, Tabaku cited the recent rejection of the opposition’s request to establish a parliamentary investigative committee into the KAYO company, stressing that this was not the first time the opposition had been denied the opportunity to establish parliamentary investigative committees.
Tabaku said that the two reforms currently being carried out in the Albanian Parliament—the Electoral Reform and the Territorial Reform—also appeared to be one-sided.
According to her, Parliament has approved a timetable for a territorial reform led unilaterally by the government, which is being carried out without consultation and to the detriment of the public interest.
