The President of the Republic, Bajram Begaj, was accused by the opposition Democratic Party on Wednesday of having benefited from payments from a private hospital in Tirana, in violation of the Constitution, and of having contracted the company where his son is employed, under suspicion of a conflict of interest.
The accusations are part of a request by the Democratic Party to initiate parliamentary proceedings to dismiss President Begaj from office, following the controversial decree he signed to schedule partial elections in Tirana, despite Mayor Erion Veliaj having filed a lawsuit with the Constitutional Court.
According to the head of the Democratic Party parliamentary group, Gazment Bardhi, the head of state has committed seven serious violations of the Constitution of Albania, including decreeing partial elections in Tirana as well as a request for the termination of the mandate of a member of the Constitutional Court.
The DP's request also denounces "a permanent conflict of interest" of the President for his and his son's personal benefits in violation of the Constitution.
"He continued to exercise public duties at the Armed Forces Academy and private activities at Acibadem Hospital in violation of his constitutional obligation to renounce any type of public duty or private activity...", the request states.
Article 89 of the Constitution prohibits the President of the Republic from holding other public offices, being a member of any party, or carrying out other private activities.
But despite this obligation, Begaj has declared to the High Inspectorate of Asset Declaration and Control, HIDAKKI, other private interests besides the duty of President.
In the declarations for 2022 and 2023, Begaj declared income from the private hospital "Acibadem" in Tirana in the total value of 4398 euros. The President also declared income from the Armed Forces Academy for the years 2022 and 2024 in the total value of 252,130 lek.
Bardhi also accused the president of cultivating a conflict of interest relationship with the company where his son was employed. According to data from the HIDAKPKI, the President's son, Klajdi Begaj, is employed at the insurance company, ANSIG sh.a with a net annual salary of 30 thousand euros.
The Presidency has contracted the ANSIG sha company for health and vehicle insurance policies with a total value of 1.3 million lek during the years 2022-2025, according to data provided by the State Treasury.
According to the opposition, these actions "violate the principle of free competition, in terms of equality of participants in public contracts, by awarding all public procurements in the field of insurance to the private company, where the son is employed, under conditions of factual conflict of interest."
The opposition sees these actions as a serious violation of public trust in the figure of the President, as they "create the perception among citizens of the use of public office for personal gain."
The presidency did not respond to a request for comment from BIRN by the time of publication of this article.
In the request for dismissal, the Democratic Party also claims that Begaj has unconstitutionally decreed the law on investigative commissions, the virtual minister "Diella", and has refused to prohibit the involvement of the diplomatic corps in the electoral campaign, while interfering in the administration of the electoral process through his cabinet.
The latest allegation is related to the fact that his legal advisor Ilir Rusmaili is also a member of the Complaints and Sanctions Commission, a body of the Central Election Commission.
Bardhi stated that this is not a political battle between the opposition and the President, whom he portrayed as a "loyalist" of Prime Minister Edi Rama and the Socialist Party.
His behavior, according to the head of the parliamentary group, has caused the President to lose his function as a neutral power over the parties and as a representative of national unity.
The Socialist Party called the opposition's request unfounded.
The Chairman of the Parliamentary Group, Taulant Balla, said on Wednesday that Begaj "has not committed any violation of the Constitution and will not be dismissed", while describing the data on the President's private benefits as "rumors". /BIRN/
