From: Natan Haasnoot
Rama, Meta, Basha Out of the Country, Sun Shines in Tirana

With Prime Minister Edi Rama in Singapore on a trade mission, opposition leader Lulzim Basha attending the inauguration of the 45th President of the United States at the invitation of the Republican Party, and Speaker of Parliament Ilir Meta still trying to get a ticket to the same event through a lobbying firm, Tirana is experiencing the first sunny and pleasant day in weeks, with temperatures going up to 16 degrees Celsius.

It seems that the foreign trips of the main protagonists of the country’s political life and the absence of the customary parliamentary session on Thursday have brought a rare moment of peace and quiet upon the capital, which otherwise is caught in a daily avalanche of scandals and corruption.

In absence of any political news worth reporting, the mainstream media have reverted to their regular amusement cocktail of violence, gossip, and drugs.

It is expected that the return of the political trio to the political scene after the weekend will give a new impulse to the stagnant political life, with the judicial and electoral reforms waiting for some new controversies and “unacceptable” proposals. Rain is expected on Tuesday.