Fatmir Xhafaj seems to be seeking to expand his influence over the budgets of the justice bodies, entering a territory that traditionally belongs to the Ministry of Justice and the Laws Committee. Following the official notifications that the justice institutions have received regarding the organization of hearings on the 2026 budget by the Laws Committee, Xhafaj has intervened by demanding that the Committee for Civic Initiatives, Cooperation and Institutional Oversight also receive data from these institutions.
The socialist MP, in his capacity as the chairman of the Committee on Civic Initiatives, Cooperation and Institutional Oversight, has asked justice institutions to forward the materials of the budget requests to this committee, in parallel with the Laws Committee.
According to the Assembly's regulations, the competence to collect and review materials related to the budgets of the justice bodies belongs only to the Laws Committee, which is the committee responsible for this area. All budget requests have long been filed with this committee, but yesterday afternoon a new email from Xhafaj's office requested that the same documents be sent to the Committee on Civic Initiatives, Cooperation and Institutional Oversight.
It has rarely happened that institutions send multiple materials, acts or documentation to every committee that shows interest in them. Parliamentary procedure provides that only the Laws Committee may forward materials to other committees for opinion, if it deems it reasonable.
It remains to be seen whether the justice institutions will respond to Xhafaj's request, or will follow existing legal practice, clarifying that the materials have been submitted to the responsible committee — the Laws Committee. In any case, Xhafaj's initiative is seen as an attempt to exert influence and take on a second supervisory role over justice budgets, in an area where competencies are clearly defined.
