President’s blow to ruling Socialists failed drive to dismiss him as Constitutional Court finds him faultless

Albania’s Constitutional Court has ruled that President Ilir Meta did not violate the constitution in a blow ton the governing Socialists as the latter had alleged, and may therefore complete his term in office.

“The accusations made against Meta do not constitute serious violation of the constitution,” the court said in its Wednesday’s verdict adding that the evidence against the head of state did not? amount to “a grave violation” of the country’s constitution.

A total of 104 Albanian MPs in the 140-member parliament had voted in favour of discharging the president last June. After Edi Rama’s Socialists won the general elections in April last year, they accused Meta of interfering in the electoral campaign and violating the constitution. They accused Meta of breaking the electoral silence, disturbing the public peace, inciting hatred and violence, endangering lives, interfering with and intimidating public institutions, and of damaging the reputation of Albania and its relations with strategic partners.

A parliamentary inquiry set up to investigate the alleged violations resulted in MPs voting to dismiss him on June 9. The case then went with the Constitutional Court and on Wednesday night it concluded that, “the facts presented do not constitute serious violations of the constitution”.

Meta, 52, whose mandate ends on July 24 this year, had denounced the investigation and argued that the move to impeach him was illegal. He had refused to attend the court hearing, telling local media that he “does not trust” their authority.

Meta’s lawyers had argued that the Socialist government did not have the power to call the investigation into his conduct because they had not yet convened after the 2021 election.

Presidential spokesman Tedi Blushi said on Thursday the verdict contained “zero surprises for the President. This case should not have started”.

This was the second attempt by the Socialists to oust him as President. The first was after Meta declined to decree the local elections in 2019, after the opposition Democratic Party and his own former party, the Socialist Movement for Integration, SMI, refused to participate in them. After one year, in 2020, after consulting with the Venice Commission, the Socialists withdrew their attempt to oust him.

Meta was elected President of Albania by MPs in 2017 after his Socialist Movement for Integration (SMI) governed for four years with Rama’s Socialists following general elections in 2013.

Albania’s presidency is largely ceremonial but carries some authority over the judiciary and the armed forces. The role is also generally understood to be apolitical, but Meta has regularly clashed with the country’s government by blocking ministerial nominees and vetoing legislation.

A confident Meta in his victory in Court has declared that on July 24 when his presidential mandate ends, he will return to politics taking the helm of SMI which is headed by his wife Monika Kryemadhi. / Argumentum.al