TIRANA, May 4 – The Speaker of the Parliament, Lindita Nikolla interrupted on Wednesday the proceedings of the Conference of chairmen for the election of the new president to continue on May 10. Nikolla stressed that the meeting to  initiate procedures for the election of a new president is considered closed and will continue on May 10 at the request proposed by the chairman of the parliamentary group of the Democratic Party (DP), Enkelejd Alibeaj and supported by the majority.

The chairman of the parliamentary group of the Socialist Party, Taulant Balla proposed the launch of procedures for the election of the President of the Republic and May 10 as the date for the first round of voting in the Parliament. Balla recalled that the Socialist Party (SP) had requested the start of the process on April 29 and postponed the meeting of the Conference of Chairmen.

“It is important that the whole process, from the first day to the last, takes place according to the Constitution. The parliamentary tradition is consolidated in this process in the spirit of constitutional provisions. The process will be only in the Albanian Parliament, only at the level of parliamentary groups. This is the only condition that the SP has,” said Balla. Meanwhile, Balla stressed that the date of the Conference of Chairmen is the starting  date of the process.

Deputies of the Reestablishment Commission of DP were not invited to the Conference.

Alibeaj said that the representatives of the opposition should participate in this process being a form of constitutional obligation, but also to the Albanians. “The proposal is that today, May 4, be considered as the starting point of the process for the election of the president and therefore May 10 be the date of the first round of voting. I do not agree,” he said.

The chairman of the parliamentary group “Alliance for Change”, Fatmir Mediu proposed that political parties, in addition to MPs and parliamentary groups, be included in the process of electing the president. /Argumentum.al