"Rama, at the head of the electoral crime scheme"/ DP reveals names and surnames of the network of SP patronage agents

2025-05-09 15:34:00, Politikë CNA

"Rama, at the head of the electoral crime scheme"/ DP reveals names

The Democratic Party, in a statement to the media, made public the names on the list of patronage activists who are working to manipulate the vote of citizens in Tirana.

According to the DP, cash payments, food aid, livestock concentrate, and promises of informal employment were used in exchange for votes.

The DP denounces that it has videos, evidence, photos and eyewitnesses who have proven that Socialist Party officials and candidates are distributing money or promising financial or other benefits in exchange for votes.

Further, names are mentioned that are buying votes in various districts.

Full statement

The purpose of this press conference is to report on the numerous daily reports with information about electoral violations and manipulations, mainly by the Socialist Party. These are just some of the reports that we have officially sent to the OSCE/ODIHR Observer Mission, the OSCE Mission in Tirana, the Delegation of the European Union in Tirana, as well as several other representations and embassies.

The main findings of the reports, in summary, show that since March, when we started sending officially, until the last days, an escalation of vote buying has been observed. All reports show a significant increase in cases of direct vote buying, especially in rural areas or poor communities. Cash payments, food aid, livestock concentrate, promises of informal employment have been used in exchange for votes. There are videos, testimonies, photos and eyewitnesses who have testified that Socialist Party officials and candidates are distributing money or promising financial or other benefits in exchange for votes.

The second category is the network of patronage agents, which has been reactivated, expanded and the work of this network has been intensified, especially in recent days. There are thousands of public administration employees, including teachers, health workers, local officials, who have been mobilized willingly or unwillingly in the Socialist Party campaign. All of this is documented, with photos, videos, links, and witnesses. The pressure of the patronage agents has also extended to the education system, including university rectors, municipal directors, and even diplomats abroad who have been reactivated to monitor, control, threaten, and blackmail the citizens' vote.

The third category is the misuse of public resources. There are 13 million euros spent on tenders, called "electoral asphalt" or for other works. Gravel laying, other works, are Albanian taxpayers' money, substandard works, which have been denounced in SPAK or in the district prosecutor's offices. There are public buildings, schools and official government platforms that have been used for propaganda in favor of the Socialist Party.

The fourth category, which I am separating separately because it is very serious from the perspective of the Democratic Party and not only, is the violation of the electoral law and in particular the law on pre-university and university education. For pre-university education we have the misuse of children in party activities, schools have become spaces for Socialist Party propaganda and teachers have been forced to participate in rallies. The most recent case denounced just a few minutes ago is a direct order from Edi Rama for all teachers and all employees of the education administration to participate in the closing rally of the Socialist Party. But not only that - they were also asked to evidence the presence of all teachers or educational staff, with photos, with videos, to prove to their superiors that they were part of the closing rally.

The fifth category is the manipulation of the diaspora vote. Over the past few days, the political coordinator for the diaspora, Ms. Jozefina Topalli, and the legal advisor of the Democratic Party, Mr. Franc Nuri, have identified concrete cases of manipulation of the diaspora vote. I will not dwell on this part at length.

What I want to emphasize more is that the Democratic Party has created a portal for electoral crime and in the division of this portal is the “Black Wall” of patronageists. We are presenting, we are publishing names, with functions, with districts, with municipalities, the patronageists of the Socialist Party. It is an ongoing work. We thank every citizen who is reacting and not accepting blackmail from the patronageists, who is rejecting the threat and blackmail from their side, who is denouncing both on the Democratic Party website, on the tool that we have made available, and all the evidence that has come to us and has been verified by the Democratic Party structures has been referred to the CEC, to which we have made official denunciations, over 200 official denunciations, and we have also referred to the special structure created in cooperation with SPAK and the General Prosecutor's Office. We have referred over 30 official reports. But we have also filed complaints on the portal page published by SPAK.

I would like to point out the fact that in the last 2 days the portal has been down. We have not been able to use it in these 2 days to make dozens of complaints that have come to us from citizens and structures of the Democratic Party, and we have used the e-mail made available only for additional information. I really hope that SPAK will consider all the cases reported.

Before I hand over the floor to Mr. Strazimir, who will speak about another phenomenon of the last two days, I will read some of the names of patronage agents or names denounced by citizens or Democratic Party structures in the regions, who have been involved in both blackmailing citizens' votes and in the electoral crime of vote buying.

I'm starting with Durrës, that is, with the Durrës district. In ward 3 there is Roni Shqopa; in ward 10, Gëzim Kosovari; Gjergji Dauti, who is also the father of the UKD chief engineer; in ward 13, Durrës, Redi Tabaku. So, I'm reading names of people involved in Albania's electoral crime. In ward 15, Feta Mataj; in ward 18, Erion Koçllari; in ward 19, and Evis Pengili, director of the Cadastre; also Edmond Kumaraku, involved in vote buying in Rimini, that is, in the diaspora. He is an employee of the embassy in Rome, about whom we have been informed that he was dismissed for corruption and has also created an association that he uses to buy votes in the diaspora.

In Shijak are Saimir Tusha and Jul Balla. In Shkallnur and Arapaj, Durrës: Artur Feta; in neighborhood 18, Emilian Lako, Skjerdi Bello. In Shijak, again, Artans Sabri Nurka; in Ujësjelles Fermësukth, Blendi Shika; in Gojas, Muhamet Nica; in Borak, Vilson Aliaj, who is also the driver of the mayor. In neighborhood 8, Klajdi Senko and Hamdi Vath Llana. Another person in Arapaj of Durrës is Indrit Gjoka, and in Rromanat of Durrës, Flamur Gjuzi.

As for another municipality in this region, it is the municipality of Vora, where I want to emphasize the fact that intensive work is being done in collaboration with criminal elements with criminal precedents. It is Minister Blendi Gonxhe, who has reactivated these criminal elements in the municipality of Vora. These are people previously convicted of criminal offenses such as murder or drug trafficking. This group, in collaboration with the mayor of the municipality Blerim Shera and the chief of the police station Elton Shahinaj, also uses the premises of the municipality of Vora to distribute monetary purchases in exchange for votes.

They have also created another network for buying and selling votes, including: Flore Zela, Arlin Papa – director of services in the municipality of Vora – who is focused on six centers in Vora; Julian Kasa – inspector of the KMT; Ermal Dedej – in the Pizzarë neighborhood; Mont Sula – in Vërdull; Vladimir Disha – in Kuq e Pizzarë; Agron Mora.

We have referred both cases, namely Durrës and Vora, to SPAK, providing other details.

Regarding the Korça region, an intensification of vote buying and selling is observed, mainly in Devoll, but also in other municipalities of Korça. We have been informed that Valent Nallbati is in the “Kleva” hotel, who has turned this hotel into a base for distributing money for vote buying and selling. Likewise, in Maliq or other areas there is Deputy Minister Jaupllari, about whom public denunciations have been made by the Democratic Party candidate, Mr. Edmond Spaho, but also by other portals, that he distributes money in exchange for votes.

In the Kukës region, in the Kukës municipality, in the Shishtavec administrative unit, as well as in Zapod, there are involved heads of regional directorates, schools and administrative units who exert pressure on the state administration. In Shishtavec there are Sami Mata – chief labor inspector in Kukës, the administrator of the administrative unit, the administrator of the economic unit and the director of the Shishtavec school. Also, in the Topojan administrative unit: Agron Hoxha – director of Kukës Taxes, the administrator of the unit and the director of the school. In Zapod: Alpert Muja – director of the regional AKP, the administrator of the unit and the director of the school in Zapod.

In Mamurras, the case has been made public and has also been referred to SPAK. The people involved in the vote buying are: Bashkim Lika – former mayor of Fushë-Mamurras, Afrim Memas, Alban Myftari, Klot Preçi – employee of the Mamurras municipality, Sham Preci, Iris Menga – employee of the Mamurras municipality, Dor Menga, Fran Menga, Rigel Sleshi, Bernard Pali, Rudolf Toma – employee of the Mamurras municipality, Simon Pernika and Artan Preci – head of the Milot unit.

I would like to emphasize that the Democratic Party has created a portal on its official website at pd.al entitled “Electoral Crime”, and part of this portal is the “Black Wall of Patronage Buyers”. Names of patronage buyers from various regions and municipalities have been published. This work continues and any case of patronage or vote buying will be published on this page, on the “Black Wall” of patronage buyers and vote buyers, and will be referred to the CEC and other law enforcement bodies.

The Socialist Party has intensified in recent days its intimidation, financial enticement for vote buying, abuse of public functions and exploitation of various institutions. But citizens are reacting by denouncing and rejecting this institutional and bandit violence, which the Socialist Party is exploiting, already massively rejected by citizens./ CNA