Former Democratic Party MP Ervin Salianji has accused Edi Rama’s government of misusing public money, raising doubts about how the Ministry of Defense conducted the tender for purchasing firefighting planes.

According to Salianji, questions about the selection procedure arise from a document by EFA Ventures, one of the largest groups in the defense industry.

He says this company submitted an offer for 3 Thrush 710P firefighting planes, which fully met the requirements and were within the Ministry of Defense’s budget.

However, after initially being declared the winner, the offer was disqualified and the contract was awarded to Air Tractor SRL, with a value 2.7 million euros higher.

The former Democratic MP demanded an explanation for why tenders are repeatedly won by companies that present the most expensive offers.

He also asked where the planes are now and whether they are ready to be used to assist during critical situations.

Salianji called for full transparency from the Ministry of Defense and the publication of every document related to this procedure.

He raised questions as well about the winning company and its legal troubles in other European Union countries.

According to him, Albania is being treated by Rama as personal property, where favors worth millions of euros are granted, while citizens face the consequences daily.

Salianji stressed that when national security is affected and the effective protection of life, property, and Albania’s forests from fires is put at risk, the process must be entirely transparent and accountable.

He declared that the Ministry of Defense has the obligation to make all tender documentation available to the public and to give Albanians complete answers.

At the same time, he called on the Special Prosecution, SPAK, to investigate the procedure, which he described as a process that raises suspicions of a corrupt affair.

In his full statement, Salianji declared that Edi Rama’s government is not abandoning corruption and abuse of public funds. He reiterated that the Ministry of Defense declared a company with an offer 2.7 million euros higher the winner, while the planes are still absent.

The post Salianji Denounces Firefighting Plane Tender: 2.7 Million Euro Higher Bid Selected, SPAK Urged to Investigate appeared first on Albeu.com.

A new debate has opened in the Assembly regarding the voting process for the $302 million loan agreement, after it emerged that only a portion of the deputies who ratified it had access to and had actually consulted the document.

According to official Assembly data, confidentiality declarations for consulting the agreement were signed by just 27 of the 140 members of Parliament.

Of those, 8 opposition deputies, members of the Security and Economy Committee, did not take part in the plenary session vote because they opposed holding the session the same day, deeming it unconstitutional.

Consequently, only 19 deputies from the Socialist Party parliamentary group who had signed the confidentiality declaration participated in the vote to ratify the agreement.

The deputies confirmed to have had access to the document are: Besnik Brahimi, Agron Malaj, Lindita Nikolli, Hysen Buzali, Igli Hasani, Elisa Spiropali, Bujar Rexha, Ilirjan Pendavinji, Shkurt Lasku, Termet Peci, Ardit Bido, Erjo Mile, Zamira Sinaj, Briseida Cakërri, Aulona Bylykbashi, Adi Qose, Milva Ikonomi, Elton Korreshi and Admir Kadeli.

According to critics of this process, the fact that most deputies voted without prior access to the agreement raises questions about transparency and how the document underwent parliamentary scrutiny.

Meanwhile, the majority has defended the procedure, arguing that the agreement was handled according to established rules and that the restricted information was due to the confidential nature of the document.

PD’s Denunciation:

The scandal: only 19 of the 74 deputies who voted to ratify the $302 million loan agreement are confirmed to have consulted it.

55 deputies vote without knowing what they are voting on.

According to official Assembly information, only 27 deputies of the Albanian Parliament, out of 140 total, signed the confidentiality declarations. Of these, 8 are opposition members of the Security and Economy Committee who did not take part in the plenary session vote because they considered holding the session the same day unconstitutional.

Therefore, only 19 deputies of the SP Parliamentary Group, namely: Besnik Brahimi, Agron Malaj, Lindita Nikolli, Hysen Buzali, Igli Hasani, Elisa Spiropali, Bujar Rexha, Ilirjan Pendavinji, Shkurt Lasku, Termet Peci, Ardit Bido, Erjo Mile, Zamira Sinaj, Briseida Cakërri, Aulona Bylykbashi, Adi Qose, Milva Ikonomi, Elton Korreshi, Admir Kadeli.

The post PD’s Denunciation: Only 19 of 74 Deputies Consulted on the $302 Million Loan Agreement with the U.S. appeared first on Albeu.com.

The Democratic Party has alleged that the government has issued a permit for a casino in the tower of the “Air Albania” stadium. Speaking to the media, Sali Berisha described this as an affair that defies all imagination.

According to Sali Berisha, the casino license was granted “with documents to individuals who could never have obtained it had they not been Olsi Rama’s nominees”.

“Today we are here to present to the media and the Albanian public one of the most unheard-of affairs, affairs that surpass all imagination. But of course not in Edi Rama’s narco-state, regarding his family members, their deeds. The public is already aware of Olsi Rama’s insane passion for gambling. His insane passion for call centers. In other words, for all ways of robbing citizens. Insatiable! The truth is, as I have declared and as has been proven, his connection to the Xibraka group is one of the most criminal connections a person can have. Today here you will hear, once again takes the stage what I once called the Kristaq Rama tower or the Air Albania tower. At that time we denounced its construction, but as the saying goes, the pear has its stem behind it. As illegal as the tower is, so is its activity and the granting of the casino license with documents to individuals who could never have obtained it had they not been Olsi Rama’s nominees,” said Sali Berisha.

The post Unprecedented affair: Berisha says casino license in ‘Air Albania’ tower illegally granted to Olsi Rama’s nominee appeared first on Albeu.com.

This Friday, the Administrative Court is examining the case in which the plaintiff is Tirana Mayor Erion Veliaj, while the defendants include Ols Dado and the Presidency.

The hearing is unfolding amid intense legal debates.

The mayor contests the fact that prosecutor Dado was appointed irregularly, in violation of legal procedures.

During his courtroom address, Veliaj stated that the situation is creating a clear disparity, where one side is benefiting from public interest while the other is losing institutional support from bodies like the High Prosecutorial Council and the State Advocate.

According to him, either the High Prosecutorial Council is showing disregard for the court, or it has reached the same conclusion as the general public: that Ols Dado lacks the status of a prosecutor and that the mayor has been deprived of his liberty.

Veliaj forcefully stressed that the position of the capital’s leader cannot be turned into an object to be taken up and discarded at whim.

He recounted that someone, wearing the official state uniform, physically removed him from his workplace. He told the panel of judges that their role is essential in restoring citizens’ trust in the justice system.

“When a person disguises himself as a police officer or prosecutor in this spectacle, he jeopardizes the fate of an entire city,” he declared.

The Mayor of Tirana also noted that he secured two electoral mandates without ever needing to appeal to the Strasbourg Court, and warned that if such an act can happen to him, then every other citizen is at risk of becoming a victim of a similar scenario.

The post Veliaj Denounces in Court: I Was Taken from Office in State Uniform, My Mandate Is Not Anyone’s Property appeared first on Albeu.com.