By Armir Shkurti
The current visit of Edi Rama to the United States must have been a great challenge for Washington. He visited the White House and K Street as a dictator dressed in democratic clothes. I am not referring to his statements against Donald Trump, the most popular U.S. Presidential Candidate, on which he was even warned by the CNN Anchor that it would not be smart to interfere in the political process of the United States. Mr. Rama arrived in Washington as a dictator because only totalitarian leaders have an approval rating of 95% within their party structures, and Rama’s popularity was no different from the recent party referendum.
Mr. Rama’s referendum results dressed him with a genuine totalitarian veil.
If Mr. Rama has the courage to comment about the U.S. Presidential candidate that he would be a threat to his country and Albania, how is it possible that in Tirana no one had the courage to comment how dangerous it is to have a Prime Minister who has garnered a victory that is equal to the same voting results to Enver Hoxha’s regime, over 35 years ago?
Even though such a referendum has been extensively elaborated; let’s observe a few details from its process. We have stated that delegates participate in the Congress to represent Socialist Party Members. Therefore they have the right to vote. However such a Congress voted… in order not to vote! The value of such a fundamental institution of the Socialist Party went down to zero, at a time that it was incapable to answer only one question: “When the Socialist Party is in Government and its Party Chairman is elected Prime Minister – is the mandate of the Party Chairman renovated automatically?
Yeeesss! Responded the Party electoral base with a single voice! 84 percent of the Socialist Party Membership participated – states the official statement of the Party. But isn’t it the whole membership? According to Chairman Rama, there are 150 thousand members. On the other hand, according to Ben Blushi who is referring to the delegates in Congress, there is much less in numbers. 84 percent is the approximate number of all those that have a party membership card or is a fictitious number stated by Mr. Rama? However the essential question is:
Can there be a political entity with democratic principles, with 95 percent of approval rating among its membership in favor of its leader (typical result of dictatorships)? Was Edi Rama aware that such a referendum would bring such results?
The second question comes automatically when one observes that the Party is voting with a unified voice in favor of its supreme leader. Then why did he have to underestimate his party’s Congress, and ask the socialist electorate “do you want me”? Mr. Rama could have very well requested his Party’s Congress delegates to provide the vote of confidence for his chairmanship. Instead of voting only for one question, the party had the luxury to hold elections. And more precisely, it was between Rama and Ben Blushi. Wasn’t Edi Rama aware that he would win his party’s chairmanship? Perhaps Rama also had a 95 percent approval rating against Ben Blushi. Even an owl knew that there were no chances for Edi Rama to lose these elections. But…
The purpose of this was to avoid holding the elections! So that mice would not pass through the lips as it becomes a routine afterwards. The message for the Party’s membership that is led by Rama is: don’t even think about it! A Supreme Leader is not voted and his power is not subject to discussions! While ignoring the Party Institutions, membership and above all, internal democracy, Edi Rama laid another layer of immunity towards strengthening his absolute power. 95 percent is in the first place depreciation of his political party and of his fellow Socialist Party Members.
Now, just as Louis XIV would say “L’etat c’est moi!” Our supreme leader has told us on April 9th, that “I am the Party!” while notarizing the violent liquidation of any democratic notion in a political party that is currently ruling the country. With this certificate in his hands, Albanian Socialist Party’s small dictator departed to United States in order to prepare his other certificate:
Dictator of the Republic of Albania!
He cannot ensure free and democratic elections, electoral reform, defense of free elections and voting procedures, in a few words Edi Rama’s Albania lacks democratic values, a party leader that has transformed his party’s institutions and has utilized numerous evil practices in order to avoid his party’s vote of confidence! At the end, a vote is the foundation of democratic values. Edi Rama killed such a spirit at the heart of his party and with his wet blooded hands he traveled towards the “greatest democracy in the world” to give leadership lesions. What kind leader would be suitable or not suitable to United States and abroad (!?)
*The opinions and arguments expressed in the article by the author are those of his own and do not necessarily represent the views of Foreign Policy News.
