Today, Chairman of the EU Affairs Commission in the Bundestag, Gunther Krichbaum declared that Minister of Interior Affairs Fatmir Xhafaj should not have remained in power following the scandal concerning his brother Agron (Geron) Xhafaj.
In an interview with the daily Panorama, the CDU MP stated that a Western Balkans working group was established within the CDU parliamentary group, which meant that the critical declarations of two other German MPs, Thorsten Frei and Johann David Wadephul, calling for an independent investigation into Xhafaj and the latter’s suspension for the duration of said investigations, constitute the official stance of Chancellor Merkel’s CDU/CSU parliamentary group.
In every interview, the MPs have stressed that an independent investigation, and the way in which the case will be handled by the Albanian judiciary, will be crucial for Germany as it decides whether or not to support Albania’s opening accession negotiations with the EU.
In June, Johann David Wadephul, deputy chairman of the CDU/CSU German parliamentary group, stated:
To my knowledge, according to the known facts and legislation, in this case, the Minister of Interior Affairs has a conflict of interest.
To maintain his credibility in the eyes of the Albanian people, and the international partners, the Minister of Interior Affairs should be interested in a complete illumination of this case. This, however, cannot be made possible if he, as someone involved in the case, remains Minister. Thus, we still have considerable doubts regarding the political will to uphold the EU’s legal standards.
Meanwhile, in May, CDU’s rapporteur for Albania, Thorsten Frei, said that investigations into the Xhafaj case are being closely followed by Germany.
The accusations [against Minister Xhafaj of amending the law and impeding the enforcement of laws] are rather serious. Above all, it should be in the interest of the Albanian government to clear this up quickly.
For me, the behavior of the Minister himself is decisive. It must be clear that he did not break the law to protect his brother. This requires an independent investigation.
I have always stressed that it is very important that every Albanian citizen be equal before the law, and that the powerful do not receive impunity. In this regard, cases like [Xhafaj’s] will always be ample tests of the reform in general.
