Rama: SPAK has gone off the rails, Erion Veliaj will not be dismissed

Prime Minister Edi Rama has come to the defense of Tirana Mayor Erion Veliaj, following his arrest on Monday by SPAK on charges of creating a corrupt scheme between companies and NGOs linked to his wife, Ajola Xoxa, and a group of businessmen close to him, with a transaction value of more than 1 million euros.

In an immediate change of course towards the actions of the investigative bodies, Rama has gone from 'no comment' to direct accusations against the Special Prosecution Office, considering Veliaj's arrest as unconstitutional and the accusations against him as a 'police novel'.

Asked by BIRN whether he would follow the previously established standard of dismissing mayors when they are under indictment, the prime minister said that Veliaj was different.

“Not only will the mayor of Tirana not be dismissed from office, but his suspension has given rise to a duty for us to continue to be steadfast guarantors of justice, promoting as much transparency as possible to uncover the truth,” Rama told BIRN.

Erion Veliaj, a close associate of the prime minister, is among the highest-ranking officials of the ruling Socialist Party to be arrested for criminal offenses of corruption, money laundering, false declarations, and concealment of assets.

Previously, former ministers Lefter Koka and Ilir Beqja were arrested by SPAK on charges of corrupt dealings with incinerators and concessions in the Health Ministry, while former Deputy Prime Minister Arben Ahmetaj is on the run.

For none of them, Prime Minister Edi Rama has attacked SPAK, following the 'no comment' line on judicial decisions. But, according to him, with the arrest of Erion Veliaj "we are in completely different conditions than all previous cases."

He claims that 'there is no concrete case of corruption' and compares the investigative file to "a voluminous novel about the excavations carried out in his and his wife's lives."

"So, essentially we are facing a case that creates reasonable suspicion of an investigation off the constitutional tracks and a detention in violation of democratic standards," he adds, although he requests the right to take more time before reaching conclusions.

The Prime Minister heralds a new era in his and the ruling party's relations with the justice system.

"The five-year stance of the Socialist Party and the Prime Minister not to make any comments on any specific case has changed with yesterday's dismissal of the mayor of the capital, to lock him up without trial in a cell and also locking his wife, the mother of a six-year-old son, in the house," Rama said.

He held a similar stance during a live chat on social media with commentators, where he questioned the standards of the functioning of justice and described the silence towards its work as 'misunderstood'.

According to Rama, the majority's new stance will be "constructive criticism."

On his initiative, a special parliamentary commission was established several months ago with the objective of strengthening the rule of law, but this mechanism has been viewed with distrust as an attempt to capture justice institutions. / BIRN