With the sudden transfer of Erion Veliaj to Fier prison, a conflict between him and Prime Minister Edi Rama surfaced, transcending the fate of the Municipality of Tirana. Through his lawyer, Plarent Nreca, and letters from prison, Veliaj claims that Rama personally took care of his punishment with the transfer to Fier and that he is blackmailing him into resigning from the Municipality of Tirana, through a message conveyed to the prison by the Minister of Justice, Toni Gogu.
Veliaj says he met Gogu in prison late Friday night and during the meeting he was asked on behalf of Rama not only to resign, but also to admit his involvement in the Flamingo protests and to give up his lawyer, Plarent Ndreca. Otherwise, he claims, new criminal charges would be added to him.
"I reject the Bolshevik hallucinations that I organized or financed the protests... I challenge the Prime Minister of the country to produce a single piece of evidence for the allegations of protests. Otherwise, get out!" Veliaj wrote.
The government has spoken so far through Minister Gogu, who accepted the prison visit but categorically denied having conveyed any message from the prime minister to him. The Justice Minister said he was surprised by Veliaj's allusions, which he considered "untrue insinuations."
Amidst the conflicting claims of each side, SPAK says it has “nothing to share” in response to BIRN’s question about whether it had formally launched an investigation. The conflict between Prime Minister Edi Rama and his former close political associate, Erion Veliaj, has raised questions about the use of executive power to exert political pressure and influence judicial processes. Referring to Veliaj’s accusations, justice and civil society experts are calling for an independent investigation by the judiciary, while considering the matter a test of SPAK’s independence.
“The justice institutions and especially SPAK should independently verify Erion Veliaj's claims, especially if they contain suspicions about the use of executive power as an instrument of political pressure,” said lawyer Gentian Serjani, head of the organization for Social Justice.
Although he views SPAK's involvement in an issue with political dimensions with skepticism, Serjani says that Veliaj's claims should not be overlooked.
“Every claim by Veliaj and his lawyer must be examined on the basis of concrete evidence, relevant communications and testimony, and not simply on the basis of public statements,” Serjani said.
The leader of the organization 'Civic Stability', Rigels Xhemollari, also argues that the issue should be investigated independently and the Minister of Justice's visit to the prison should be clarified.
"SPAK must verify Minister Gogu's visit to prison, does it meet the legal criteria or are we dealing with an extralegal meeting within the confines of that mafia, as the mayor claims," said Xhemollari.
According to him, the accusations should not turn into another political clash, but should receive an institutional response. In this context, he argues that Veliaj's lawyer should have immediately addressed SPAK regarding his claim against the Minister of Justice and the Prime Minister, and not to television shows.
“This cannot remain in terms of rhetoric and political warfare, but must be subject to legal and procedural verifications,” he concludes.
Zef Preçi, director of the Albanian Center for Economic Research, also believes that Veliaj's accusations should be independently verified.
“SPAK and the justice institutions should independently verify Veliaj's claims,” he told BIRN, adding that the issue is of high public sensitivity because the accusation is directed at the prime minister for pressuring a prisoner.
Preçi believes that Veliaj's case bears a similarity to the case of former Socialist MP Klotilda Bushka, who was accused by SPAK of obstruction of justice because she allegedly pressured the witness in Veliaj's trial.
“In both cases, a senior political power-holder is accused of using his position to influence a key person in an ongoing criminal trial. Then, by the Assembly, in favor of Veliaj; today, allegedly, by the government against him,” he says.
According to him, SPAK must show the same determination in the investigation.
"Only in this way does it show that the standard against political interference in justice applies equally, regardless of who exerts pressure and on whom," he concludes./BIRN
