Arben Ahmetaj: Edi Rama, the head of the organization… is making a spectacle out of the arrests of me and Meta

Cim Peka: Hello! It’s been exactly six months since our second interview with former Deputy Prime Minister Arben Ahmetaj, which took place in Switzerland. As promised, we said we would meet again, and here we are. Arben Ahmetaj, it’s great to see you! How have you been?

Ahmetaj: Thank you. Welcome! How are you? I don’t want to come across as complaining or sounding like a crybaby, but...

Peka: When I asked how you’ve been, I was referring to the second time we spoke. You told me, “I have COVID, but it will pass, and my memory will come back.” Has your memory returned?

Ahmetaj: The return of memory is a process tied to the cleansing of the air and the land from deadly viruses. I hope that a cleansing process will take place in our territory, one that will not only help me regain my memory but also allow an entire society to remember what it means to live again after 30 years that we have lived in fear and terror, whispering that they are eavesdropping on us, that they are taking our phones, arresting us, that the courts don’t even ask questions or read the case files. SPAK arrests anyone, anywhere, whenever it wants. You dare not speak ill of Rama, or SPAK will come for you. I hope that a refreshing breeze will sweep through the air, restoring my memory and, more importantly, reviving the collective memory of Albanian society.

Peka: In fact, we’ve only just begun on this topic. In the second interview, Mr. Ahmetaj, you made very strong and concrete accusations. The expectation was that SPAK, the justice system, would launch an investigation, but there was no action following that interview. My first concern is this: when you see no reaction, are you still motivated to continue speaking out?

Ahmetaj: It’s not true that SPAK has not acted. To be fair, we must give Caesar what belongs to Caesar. SPAK has acted, it has accused my wife and ex-wife.

Peka: Did SPAK act against the informant?

Ahmetaj: Of course, they acted against the witnesses by threatening them. They acted by saying, “Now that we’re finished with Berisha, we’ll deal with him.” They acted… my lawyer, an honorable and well-known man, tells me that they have reversed the valuation of real estate or investments in my house, in Erjola’s house, or in someone else’s house because SPAK didn’t like it. So, SPAK did act, and in a very interesting way, in a case that is as absurd as it is indicative of a very serious phenomenon: the capture of justice.

I was reading about the case of the former mayor of Shkodra, Bardh Spahija. I don’t know him personally, and I have no strong feelings toward him, but it’s outrageous to think that SPAK is focusing on a former mayor, whether from the PD or PS, for removing a director. Back in 2013, weren’t countless directors replaced? Aren’t today’s trial costs exceeding 40 million euros? Why isn’t that being addressed? Why isn’t Edi Rama held accountable for ignoring a Constitutional Court decision and mocking the system? He picks and chooses when to enforce decisions to suit his interests. Meanwhile, SPAK takes action against Bardh Spahija. Can anyone find an example from a democratic country where prosecutors make statements to please the prime minister? I have nothing against anyone personally, I say this even as someone who knows Edi Rama’s brother. What Olsi Rama did or didn’t do is irrelevant here. The issue lies with SPAK, where prosecutors in a so-called democratic system are compelled to absurdly clarify, “We don’t know who he is, but we know he isn’t Olsi Rama.”

What do you need, son, to come out and say all this? Just continue the investigations; there’s no need for public statements. Why even make them? Who asked for this? Are you so compromised that you can’t even breathe freely?

Of course, SPAK has acted, it’s even created spectacles with arrests. For example, the style remains the same. When Edi Rama dismissed me as head of the organization, it was symbolic, Meta was leaving, and I was made to leave the same day. Why? Because Meta was handed the file on the incinerators and the American embassy was involved. Then they staged a spectacle with my arrest. They showed up in a convertible, alongside the former director of roads, Vis Berberi, and the biggest looter of the budget, riding in that same convertible. These three and the head of the organization orchestrated a show.

Later, they drew parallels on Top Channel, because TCH is their network, and created satire, telling them to make an "Portokalli" sketch about Meta and Ahmetaj sharing a cell. They even resorted to dark humor, the so-called strategic investor made jokes about Meta and me in the same cell. Life can take unexpected turns, but mocking human life like this is despicable.

Then, under orders from the head of the organization, they arrested the former president in the most vulgar way imaginable, as if he were El Chapo, as if he had killed Kennedy or assassinated the Pope. Let me make this clear, I have no friends to defend me, and I’m not here to defend Ilir Meta. I’ve reached a point where I can’t count on anyone. My only priority now is protecting myself and my family, especially my children, whom I’ve hurt the most.

That arrest marked the collapse of respect for the state, orchestrated by the head of the organization solely for symbolic violence. That’s why I’ve spoken out, and you asked me whether SPAK acted or not.

Peka: So, for you, Rama is the head of the organization. Which organization, exactly? Please clarify this for the public, as I see this will be a recurring reference in our discussion.

Ahmetaj: Rama is not a prime minister; he is the head of the organization.

Peka: What organization?

Ahmetaj: Of course, we will elaborate.