On Tuesday, the parliamentary law committee extended the term of the parliamentary committee investigating whether President Ilir Meta should be impeached.
Due to the coronavirus epidemic, the committee will now have time until July 31 to build a case.
The deadline was pushed back once before, in December 2019, following the earthquake that struck the country on November 26.
The parliamentary committee of inquiry was formed on July 8, 2019, and was supposed to operate for three months.
The Socialist majority in parliament accuses President Meta of having violated the Constitution by decreeing the cancellation of June 30 local elections, and for appointing a member of the Constitutional Court.
In its final opinion on elections, the Venice Commission concluded that it is up to the Constitutional Court, not the Parliament, to decide whether President Ilir Meta violated the Constitution by canceling and postponing the June 30 local elections.
In another draft opinion of the appointment of members of the Constitutional Court, the Venice Commission concluded that the President’s actions complied with the Constitution, and there is no basis for his impeachment. However, the adoption of the draft was postponed, allegedly under pressure by Albanian government, and despite calls by the union of Albanian judges for the opinion findings and recommendations to be retained unchanged.
