Dissenting Albania Socialist MPs Jeopardise Reforms

Albania's ruling centre-left coalition faces a battle to rally all its MPs on Thursday in parliament in order to pass plans for the country's administrative-territorial reform and amendments to the law for the organization of the High Council of Justice, HJC.

They require a qualified majority of 84 votes out 140 seats.

Four Socialist MPs and Mark Frroku, head of the junior government partner, the Christian Democratic Party, boycotted the last session, leaving the ruling majority without the necessary quorum to pass the HCJ amendments.  

Apart from Frroku, Socialist MPs Tom Doshi, Parid Cara, Armando Prenga and Pjerin Ndreu were not present during the parliamentary session.

Local media reported that Doshi, Prenga, Ndreu and Frroku will join Thursday session, while Cara has yet to decide.

“I will definitely be present in Thursday’s parliamentary session and will vote in the territorial reform and the other laws,’ Tom Doshi, one of the disgruntled Socialist MPs, told journalists on Tuesday.

“The objections that I had [toward the government] I already expressed them,” he added.

The MPs in question are known in parliament for being involved into brawls and some of them have faced accusations of having a criminal background.  

At first Doshi claimed that they were not present in the session because they were celebrating Frroku’s birthday.

However, after it emerged that Frroku’s birthday is in October, local media reported that the MPs had been disgruntled about not having a say on government appointments, particularly in the police force.

Last Thursday’s boycott was the first schism in the ruling majority since the June 23, parliamentary elections.