Immunity / Rama Applies Double Standards, Rejects Request for Balluku’s Arrest

Prime Minister Edi Rama and the Socialist majority have refused to approve a request by the Special Structure Against Corruption and Organized Crime (SPAK) to arrest Belinda Balluku, applying a different standard from previous cases and openly obstructing justice.

Although Rama has consistently stated that he and his majority would not stand in the way of justice, he has taken a different position in Balluku’s case, diverging from the approach followed with her predecessor, Arben Ahmetaj. In the case of Democratic Party leader Sali Berisha, Rama instructed his lawmakers to swiftly vote in favor of lifting his immunity.

Syri TV

Prime Minister Edi Rama and the Socialist majority rejected SPAK’s request to lift the parliamentary immunity of MP Belinda Balluku and clear the way for her arrest. While the Socialist Party did not issue an official position, effectively gaining additional time, remarks by Ulsi Manja during the Mandates Council meeting, stating that the measures currently in force were sufficient for the needs of the investigation, signaled that the Socialists would not give the green light to SPAK’s request to arrest the government’s second-ranking official.

However, while now blocking justice to protect Belinda Balluku, Rama had until recently pledged unwavering support for judicial reform. The prime minister did not apply the same standard to Balluku’s predecessor, Arben Ahmetaj. Just hours after SPAK’s accusations against his close associate became public, Rama publicly distanced himself from Ahmetaj.

Similarly, in the case of opposition leader Sali Berisha, Rama instructed his deputies to vote to lift his immunity in record time.

In contrast, only minutes after SPAK made public its request to lift Balluku’s immunity, the prime minister described the move as shameful and inconsistent with European standards, mobilizing both the executive and legislative branches to confront SPAK.

As investigative files have reportedly drawn closer to the prime minister himself, he went as far as proposing amendments to the Code of Criminal Procedure to shield himself and members of his cabinet, seeking to prevent suspension from office.