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"Rama, an autocrat", German media: His well-oiled clientelistic system ensures his success in the elections

Politiko 2025-05-13 13:33:26

"Rama, an autocrat", German media: His well-oiled clientelistic system

Following the elections in Albania, German-speaking media mentions the possibility that Prime Minister Edi Rama will seek a fourth term.

But it also reflects on the current situation in Albania, where it is emphasized that although Edi Rama and the Socialist Party are heading towards victory, they are contested in domestic politics.

The newspaper "Neue Zürcher Zeitung", under the headline "Edi Rama will be Albania's prime minister for the fourth time - portrait of a permanent anti-conformist", underlines today that we should not be deceived by Rama's image as an outsider in politics.

"The construction boom has also damaged Rama's reputation as a reformer over time. Urban development focuses on what is wrong in the rest of Albania: nepotism allocates construction permits to close people, and the awarding of contracts depends on political connections, slush funds and underhand deals."

At the center of this network are the ruling parties and their affiliated companies. The repeated success of Rama's Socialists is largely attributed to this clientelistic system.

In 2013, he defeated his arch-enemy, Sali Berisha, for the first time and became prime minister. Rama is likely to hold the post for another four years, making his sixteenth year in power.

What is wrong with the state became apparent in February, when Erion Veliaj, the mayor of the capital and a close friend of Rama, was arrested along with his wife by the Special Prosecution Office against Corruption. They are accused of having built a sophisticated system of self-enrichment in collaboration with friendly construction companies and NGOs.

Rama erupted in anger, called for protests and attacked the investigating judges. In doing so, he undermined a reform that he himself had initiated in 2017. With a view to EU membership, the country's crumbling judiciary was supposed to become independent and powerful. Since then, more than half of the judges have been replaced and new institutions have been created to fight corruption. That they are working, is shown by the indictment and arrest of Veliaj.

Rama's well-oiled clientelistic system is one explanation for the socialists' electoral success."

In the German media, Rama is portrayed as a truly pro-European, unconventional artist who is very well received in Brussels, because the policy is EU-compliant, but also quite contested. "Elections in Albania: How authoritarian is Edi Rama", asks one of the largest German radios, "Dlf" in an extensive weekend chronicle. "Edi Rama is a welcome friend in the EU, and it seems that ideologically and geopolitically he stands steadfastly on the side of Europe. But critics fear that Albania's successes on issues such as the rule of law and democracy are successes only on paper, and that the country is not ready for EU membership. This also has to do with Edi Rama showing authoritarian traits"./syri.tv

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