The government reshuffle that is part of the McAllister+ agreement between Prime Minister Edi Rama and opposition leader Lulzim Basha will cause a major shake-up in Prime Minister Rama’s government, the second one in two months.
On March 13, Prime Minister Rama nominated four new ministers, in an attempt to silence the increasingly vocal international criticism of former Minister of Interior Affairs Saimir Tahiri. And now the minister that took over from Tahiri, and who exposed him as to a large extent responsible for overseeing the complete cannabization of the country, will have to make way for a new technical minister proposed by the opposition.
According to the agreement, the following ministers replaced by technical ministers proposed by the opposition:
- Deputy Prime Minister Niko Peleshi (PS)
- Minister of Interior Affairs Fatmir Xhafaj (PS)
- Minister of Education and Sports Lindita Nikolla (PS)
- Minister of Health Ogerta Manastirliu (PS)
- Minister of Social Welfare and Youth Olta Xhaçka (PS)
- Minister of Finances Arben Ahmetaj (PS)
- Minister of Justice Petrit Vasili (LSI)
Ministers Xhafaj, Manastirliu, and Xhaçka has only been on their posts for two months.
Remarkable is also the replacement of Minister Vasili, from government coalition partner LSI. Vasili had replaced former Minister of Justice Ylli Manjani in late January, after the latter had become increasingly critical of Prime Minister Rama. Minister Vasili has recently become leader of the LSI, after Speaker of Parliament Ilir Meta became President-Elect.
The LSI had not been part of the final leg of the negotiations, and Vasili responded with irony to the agreement:
I am happy that finally an agreement has been reached for which I fought until the end. I am happy that the opposition will participate in the elections. Being freed from my bureaucratic duties gives me all the time to dedicate myself to the campaign to make LSI the largest party. I hope that in these valuable 7 days with which the elections have been postponed, the opposition will realize its objectives for high electoral standards, the fight against drugs, and decriminalization.
The new distribution of minister in the broad coalition government of PS-LSI-PD, which will be led by Prime Minister Rama until the installation of the new Parliament in September, will contain 9 PS ministers (including two without portfolio), 7 technical ministers proposed by the PD (including a Deputy Prime Minister), and 4 ministers of the LSI.
