The Democratic League of Kosovo’s (LDK) support for the 2027 budget will depend on how the party’s proposals are addressed and whether the budget serves citizens’ interests. MP Armend Zemaj said the LDK would not vote for a budget that serves only the interests of the ruling party.
Speaking to KosovaPress, Zemaj listed education, healthcare, economic development, energy and security as the areas where his party wants funding to be focused in next year’s budget. He said these measures should also address the high cost of living, remedy shortcomings and create better conditions for citizens.
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The LDK MP criticized the government’s management of the current budget. He said that, despite its claimed growth in recent years, the management of funds and investments had failed to deliver the necessary improvements in citizens’ lives, while spending had been high.
Turning to capital investment, Zemaj said that over the past six years almost every project had faced roadblocks, extended deadlines or problems he described as “tender mania.” In this context, he cited infrastructure, healthcare tenders and numerous other procedures that, he said, were associated with higher costs to the budget.
Another issue that Zemaj said required everyone’s attention was security. He called for investment in this sector to cover both the Kosovo Army and the Police, stressing the need for appropriate working conditions for police personnel.
Zemaj recalled reports and discussions about police officers lacking basic equipment, including clothing, boots and protective gear. He said these needs, along with other national security issues, must be addressed in the new budget planning and proposal.
According to the MP, last year’s claims about adequate investment in these areas have not been borne out. He accused the current government of focusing more on subsidies for electoral gain and on spending the budget than on capital projects that improve citizens’ lives and develop the Republic of Kosovo.
Zemaj also singled out single-source tenders for criticism, saying the Kurti government had awarded more than 3,000 of them. He stressed that the LDK would not support a budget geared toward the selective interests of those in power, whether in its treatment of municipalities and citizens or in its spending of funds and use of single-source tenders.
For this reason, he made his party’s vote conditional on its proposals being taken into account, ruling out support for a budget that serves only the ruling party rather than citizens.
Regarding the submission of the draft budget for 2027, Zemaj expressed optimism that it would not be submitted late. However, he criticized the practice followed in previous years, when, he said, MPs were given little time to review the document and put forward their proposals.
In his view, submitting the budget late is a way of exerting pressure to secure its approval. Zemaj said that, alongside growing public interest, this also creates a situation in which MPs lack the time needed for a proper review and to submit suggestions.
He added that proposals had been submitted over these years by both individual MPs and political groups, but none had received government support. He described their rejection as dismissive and inappropriate for a democratic party that seeks to serve all citizens of Kosovo without distinction.
