The Pro-Export Albania Association (PES) has requested the Central Election Commission (CEC) to suspend inspections on businesses by government agencies four months before and after the elections.
In their letter, dated December 19, the PES supports a recent CEC draft decision that bans top officials from engaging in activities that are perceived to benefit election campaigns four month before election day.
The list of officials include the prime minister, ministers, mayors and their deputies, heads of departments, agencies, and public companies.
They cannot participate in the promotion of projects or investments in the fields of transport, energy, environment, health, culture and education. They are also required not to present in public the delivery of reconstructed facilities to victims of natural disasters.
The recent CEC draft decision also requires the government to refrain from raising salaries, pensions, economic or social support, reducing or removing taxes, imposing fiscal amnesties, privatizing public assets or awarding bonuses.
The PES request, on the other hand, asks for bodies like the tax agency, customs agency, labor inspectorate, environmental inspectorate etc., to be suspended from exercising inspections for a period of four months before and after elections.
They maintain that this is required to keep the central and local government away from influencing the outcome of elections.
The association says it represents about 700 factories of clothing and footwear industry, which provided over 40 percent of Albania’s exports during 2019, and employed over 70 thousand employees.
