The parliamentary committee of inquiry probed more than 20 minutes of TV statements by President Ilir Meta, as well as dozens of the President’s social media posts to check whether they amounted to a “serious violation” of the Constitution.
In today’s committee meeting, they also appointed two legal experts, Erind Mërkuri and Artan Spahiu, to interpret the evidence presented by the Socialist Party for President Meta’s dismissal.
The committee members listened to excerpts from the President’s interviews, given mostly during the electoral campaign, and to some 40 social media posts read out loud by Socialist MP Klotilda Bushka.
Another Socialist MP, Spartak Braho, described Meta’s posts as “criminal, totally against the law, plots, insults against the public and international officials.” He questioned whether the President had reported his public accusations to the Prosecutor General.
During the electoral campaign, Meta accused the government of being involved in preparations to rig the elections, of colluding with criminal gangs to buy votes, and called on people to defend their vote.
Immediately after the April 25 elections, the Socialists declared that the Parliament must dismiss the President for committing “serious violations of the Constitution.”
In their list of allegations, the PS claims that Meta has failed to guarantee national unity, he has encouraged political strife, incited people to violence and hate, that have resulted in one dead and several wounded. He is also accused of insulting the Prime Minister and foreign diplomats, and hence of damaging Albania’s image worldwide.
The President has denied the allegations, and accused the ruling Socialist Party of Prime Minister Edi Rama of attempting to divert attention from their own violations of the Constitution.
The committee of inquiry was given 3 weeks to complete a report and make a proposal to the Parliament on whether the President should be dismissed. This turnaround period is unprecedented for the Albanian Parliament, as historically, committees of inquiry have had at least 3 months to issue their reports. This time, however, the Socialists plan to complete the process before the new Parliament is convened in September.
