Sali Berisha stated that former ministers Arben Ahmetaj and Damian Gjiknuri refused to sign the Vlora airport project, following the request of the claimant company that demanded 120 million euros in compensation in case the number of passengers was lower than expected. According to him, this attitude shows that they were more cautious towards a contract with high risk for the state.
Berisha stressed that the construction of the Vlora airport “makes no sense” in a city with a small population and difficult operating conditions. He described this project as a “black pillar of corruption” and added that the responsibility does not lie with businessmen Behgjet Pacolli and Valon Ademi, but with Edi Rama, Belinda Balluku and Taulant Balla.
According to Berisha, Pacolli and Ademi "have no fault" in this affair, while responsibility should be sought from the political leaders who pushed the project forward.
The DP leader also said that the concession should have been canceled the moment the Turkish company left. According to him, the Turks were the ones who gave him the guarantee of building the airport since they had the experience and after their departure, instead of canceling the contract, Balluku transferred the shares to Mabco Construction in violation of the law.
"The Turkish company, which is a company with expertise in building airports, without whose presence the airport would not have started construction, would not have been built and in managing airports. So, it signs the transfer of shares from this company to Mabco Construction. At this moment the tender is canceled. The Turkish company with expertise on which the tender was based, says goodbye and Balluku, as if he had the property in his own backyard, signs by transferring the shares to Pacolli," he said.
Berisha further said that the shares of the Turkish company that were transferred to Pacolli are the bone of contention because according to him, they belong to Edi Rama and Belind Ballkuk.
