Albania Opposition Rally to Seek Speaker's Resignation

Supporters of Albania's opposition centre-right Democrats plan to gather on Thursday in front of the government office in Tirana amid allegations of a murder plot involving the speaker of parliament, Ilir Meta.

"Edi Rama [the Prime Minister] and Ilir Meta, based on accusations from their own ranks, appear to be involved in liquidations and assassinations," the head of the Democratic Party, Lulzim Basha, said on Sunday.

Besides chairing parliament, Meta is head of the Socialist Movement for Integration, LSI, the junior partner in the centre-left governing coalition of Prime Minister Rama.

Tom Doshi, a former Socialist MP, last week claimed that Meta had paid an assassin 600,000 euro to kill him and an opposition Democratic Party MP, Mhill Fufi.

Doshi has since been expelled from the Socialist parliamentary group for his attacks on the government.

Fears that some people might take matters into their own hands on Thursday have raised concerns the fear that the protest could turn violent.

Similar fiery statements were made by the Socialist Party, when it was in opposition, on the eve of the January 2011 protests, which turned into a riot in which four protesters were killed and several others wounded.

The 2011 protests were staged as a response to another scandal involving Meta and the LSI, which at the time was allied with the Democratic Party-led government of former Prime Minister Sali Berisha.