Former deputy and former deputy chairman of the PD Astrit Patozi will not take part in the leadership race of the PD. Following a decision made by the board of the PD, also two other candidates, Astrit Sinanaj and Erion Piciri have been disqualified for not fulfilling all the procedures envisioned in the statutes.
In a press statement, deputy chairman Edi Paloka stated:
The case of Patozi is clear. There has been a declaration of Patozi in which he expressed his wish to run as a candidate but under a series of conditions. Today he declared that his conditions were not fulfilled. So Patozi is not running because his conditions were not met. It was not a question of bureaucracy, he was asked that if he really wanted to be a candidate, he should come and say that he is candidate, that’s it.
Astrit Patozi responded surprised to the decision of the PD board during an interview with Sokol Balla, and stated that he will continue to be part of the race:
This is more than a farce. My non-candidacy or the my candidacy begin declared invalid is over the top, it’s something I didn’t expect. There hasn’t been any rule that I should submit a document, but if there was one I still wouldn’t present myself. For my my will expressed globally for 3 million Albanians is enough.
I continue to be and will remain candidate for the leadership of the Democratic Party, as long as there is a competition.
