The leader of one faction of the divided Albanian Democratic Party, Enkelejd Alibeaj has expelled four members from the parliamentary group, further exacerbating the strife within the opposition just four months before local elections.
The Democratic Party (PD) split into two groups in 2021 following the expulsion of founder Sali Berisha by at-the-time chairman Lulzim Basha after the former was sanctioned by the US State Department and then the UK. A tense standoff followed with both Berisha and Basha trying to take leadership of the party, including a violent protest at the party headquarters on 8 January 2022.
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Basha ultimately resigned and Berisha assumed the role of chairman, after which, a court of first instance ruled that his takeover was legal, a decision that is now being appealed. Alibeaj heads one section of the divided PD, while Berisha leads the other.
Local elections are set to take place in April and they will be crucial as the opposition boycotted the 2019 vote leaving the ruling Socialist Party to govern in almost every municipality for the last four years.
The four expelled deputies are Oerd Bylykbashi, Belind Këlliçi Agron Shehaj and Tritan Shehu. The reason for their expulsion is failing to distance themselves from the violence Alibeaj says took place during the protest at the headquarters.
“For this purpose, the parliament of Albania has been officially notified that MPs Tritan Shehu; Oerd Bylykbashi; Belind Kelliçi and Agron Shehaj are no longer part of the Parliamentary Group of the Democratic Party, starting from 11.01.2023″, says the announcement of Alibeaj’s group.
But this is not the only issue plaguing the party. On Monday, the Central Election Commission invited all parties to name their election administration officials, putting the fractured PD in a difficult position.
The party has until 29 January to name the officials but both factions disagree over who has the right to register them with Berisha arguing the court decision gives him the right to do so- something disputed by the other side.
The ruling Socialist Party and the Democrats each name two members of each zonal commission as administration officials. Two smaller parties in the race name one each and a seventh is appointed in half the electoral units by the ruling party and in the other half by the opposition.
This format was introduced in a bid to bolster electoral credibility as large swathes of the population mistrust the process, the parties, and what are supposed to be non-partisan institutions.
The appeals court decision has been postponed multiple times and it is unknown if it will come before the cut-off for registration.
(Alice Taylor | Exit.al)
Source: euractiv.com
