After underlining that Albania is a sovereign country that takes its own
decisions, the Commissioner for Enlargement, Stefan Fule, declared that
the referendum cannot be used to impose Parliamentary regulation, and
considered it as only a populist initiative on the verge of elections.
“Albania is a sovereign country and the elected politicians have the right to adopt the decisions they think is good for their country, and test this in the next elections. This is what happens in a sovereign country.
But let me make the following remark. I made a comment here in Brussels and Albania. I don’t like the laws of these three issues to be linked with anything else. I don’t like these artificial links. I also made, I think, a very clear statement, that Albania is a country with a very good record of adopting relevant legislation with the 3/5th majority. It is very possible. And I am asking myself where exactly you have the politics involved, and where exactly you have something someone might call populism.
You don’t use a referendum to impose the rules and procedures in Parliament. Once you start that, where is the end of this creativity imposing through the referendum the various rules of procedures and laws in any country”, Fule declared.
The Commissioner reiterated that the three remaining issues are a condition to show the consensus between the majority and opposition, when asked by TCH if the candidate status is possible through referendum.
“When we were together with the majority and the opposition, looking at the list of the issues which needs to be fulfilled and implemented for the Commission to recommend the candidate status, we put also there a number of legislations and other steps requiring the qualified majority.
In other words, it requires not only communication, but the inclusiveness of the reform process. From the very beginning I have talked about the inclusiveness of the process.
For me, from the very beginning, adopting or delivering on those three laws, was not about the substance, but about the way to work it through, where both the opposition and the majority have a role to play and where both the majority and the opposition have a special responsibility.
That responsibility is not toward the European Union and Brussels, but to the citizens of Albania”, Fule declared.
The Commissioner declared for Top Channel that he has foreseen no meeting with the Integration Minister, Majlinda Bregu, who will be this Friday at the Association Stabilization Committee.
Prepared by Arta Tozaj
Top Channel
