The development of a tourist resort in the Baks-Rrjoll area, with a construction permit allegedly obtained through forged documents, after removing land from protected areas, is considered by residents as robbery, while environmental experts see it as an act of destruction of natural values.
Under the slogans of "Justice, justice", dozens of residents of Rrjoll in Velipojë protested on Thursday morning in front of the doors of the Special Prosecution Office against Corruption and Organized Crime (SPAK), claiming that the construction of a tourist resort in their village is being carried out with a permit based on forged documents of fictitious owners.
Among them was Mara Paplekaj, a resident of the village of Rrjoll, who said that, despite negotiations with the development firm Gener 2 - which has received the status of strategic investor for the development of the project - they have not reached a point of agreement.
"We have 175 acres of our own land, we have land both in the mountains and in the plains, but they are robbing us of it with forged documents," she said.
"Bashkim Ulaj has called us, but we did not agree with his words and we are in court because he promised us ridiculous things that are not for us," added Paplekaj, referring to the main shareholder of the Gener 2 company. "But they still came and started the works," she emphasized.
According to Paplekaj, the residents are extremely outraged and are demanding the intervention of the state and justice institutions to calm the bloodshed.
Through a public response, Gener 2 claimed that it had followed all legal and institutional steps to obtain the construction permit.
"All competent institutions have expressed a positive opinion on the project, while every step has been accompanied by complete technical, legal and environmental documentation, including public hearings with local residents," the company writes.
Threat to the ecosystem
The "Blue Borgo" project, which has already begun construction, consists of a tourist resort with 33 accommodation structures with 3 to 10 floors above ground and 1 underground floor.
This resort is planned to be built within a time frame of 60 months by the company Gener2, with the status of a strategic investor in the Baks-Rrjoll area, which was once part of the protected landscape areas.
Imeld Sokoli, a territorial development expert, told BIRN that such a project in one of the country's most important protected areas poses a cost not only to the community, but above all to nature and the ecosystem.
"From a territorial point of view, the village of Baks-Rrjoll is part of the Velipojë-Bunë Protected Landscape, which is located between two environmental habitats, the Viluni Lagoon and the Rana e Hedhun Natural Monument," explained Sokoli.
"As a territorial expert, I can say that what is happening in this territory comes as a result of the legal changes for territorial planning and development in September 2024, where the National Council for Territory and Waters (KKTU) receives the authority to issue construction permits even in protected areas," the urban planner explained.
According to him, such developments constitute an irreversible change in the territory and lead to the destruction of natural values and, consequently, violate every principle of environmental protection.
"This area represents a sandy wetland space, which is of particular importance for various species, mainly birds," Imeld Sokoli told BIRN, implying that with the approval of this project, these species would also disappear.
Even according to residents of the area, the amendment to the Law on Protected Areas in February 2024 was made with the aim of giving the green light to strategic investments in areas that were until then considered untouchable.
“Rrjolli has been a Protected Area since 2016 until today and only the taxed part has been removed,” Prek Molla, a resident of Rrjolli, told BIRN.
Fictitious owners?
Residents claim that businessman Ulaj, owner of the Gener2 company, has managed to negotiate with a fictitious owner in order to reach a quick agreement and obtain a construction permit in this area, despite the objections of the locals.
"Every document that Fatmir Shpellzaj has is forged," said Prek Molla, adding that "the public hearing was held, but not in our village; I don't know where." "I have filed a report with SPAK for this," he added.
The residents have further filed a lawsuit in Court and are requesting that the works be halted until a final decision by the Court of Appeal, where the next hearing is expected to take place on February 16.
The Gener 2 company rejects these claims as speculative, disinformation and expresses its determination to continue construction of the resort.
Redi Muçi, MP for the Joint Movement, told BIRN that such problems, where strategic investments affect quite a few communities in various coastal areas, are widespread in the country.
According to him, residents' property rights are deliberately held hostage by the government to favor strategic investors in Albania.
"The property rights and development permits of ordinary residents are being deliberately held hostage," the Joint Movement MP told BIRN.
"This is so that every time a strategic investor or the next oligarch appears, the paperwork is done quickly, leaving aside or not giving what belongs to the residents who are the legitimate owners of these properties," concluded Muçi. /BIRN/
