In a series of attacks on justice officials, Prime Minister Edi Rama also targeted Judge Hazbi Balliu for a decision to secure a lawsuit against a building confiscated by the KKT, even though the lawsuit and decision were based on acts approved by his government that resulted in the legalization of most of the illegally confiscated buildings in Tirana.
In the wake of the action to liberate public spaces, Prime Minister Edi Rama attacked another justice system official on August 1, classifying him in the so-called 'anti-law trench'.
The target was the judge of the Administrative Court, Hazbi Balliu, and the reason was related to a decision to secure a lawsuit aimed at preventing the alienation of a building confiscated by the National Territorial Council, until the final resolution of the case in court.
"We have made confiscations and will continue to do so, despite the fact that some shameless, completely shameless judge comes along who takes security measures for a building built without a permit...," Rama wrote, while also taking to court the institutions governing the judiciary that did not act against the "blatant abuses" of prosecutors and judges.
The legal conflict that has angered Prime Minister Edi Rama has its origins in a 2022 decision by his government to confiscate unauthorized buildings for public interest. However, the seizure action turned months later into a legalization procedure, which allowed most builders who had violated permits in central Tirana to pre-purchase unauthorized additions at prices 10 times cheaper than market value and benefit from hundreds of thousands of euros in tax and fee exemptions.
But not all builders had the same chance.
A 6-story hotel near the Artistic Lyceum, built in violation of the construction permit by the RT Max company owned by Thana and Robert Biqiku, was on the list of buildings confiscated by the KKT decision, but unlike the other buildings, the company was not given the right of pre-emption even though it deposited 10% of the alleged value of the construction with the Ministry of Finance.
In June of this year, the Confiscated Objects Commission decided to change the destination of the building into offices for the State Cadastre Agency, after the existing building located near Lake Park was assessed as a risky building as a result of the 2019 earthquake.
The RT Max company appealed to the Court with a request for injunctive relief against the decision of the Confiscated Objects Commission.
Judge Hazbi Balliu is a young magistrate, having graduated from the Magistrates' School in 2019. Since then, he has worked as a judge in the Administrative Courts of Gjirokastra, Lushnja and most recently Tirana.
Contacted by BIRN, Judge Hazbi Balliu said that, contrary to what the prime minister claimed, his decision did not lift the confiscation of the building, but suspended its alienation.
"The decision is a lawsuit insurance, otherwise, from what the prime minister says, it does not lift the confiscation, it simply allows the owners to contest the case in court, suspending the execution of the decision of the Confiscated Objects Commission," he said.
Balliu further added that he was not concerned by criticisms of the decision-making, as even if they did not come from the government, they would come from the other side in the process, but said that he was touched by the prime minister's statement calling him "shameless."
"We, as judges of the Administrative Court, handle cases with the government as a party every day and I am not bothered by the prime minister's criticism of the decision," said Balliu.
"What touched me is that he called me 'shameless'. I don't know where the prime minister saw that I behaved like a shameless person? If there is evidence that I am shameless, he should make this credible to the public and show where or how," he added.
Attack on justice
Judge Hazbi Balliu is not the only magistrate attacked by Prime Minister Edi Rama for his decision-making. Throughout his government, Rama has often publicly tried prosecutors and judges who have made decisions against his government.
This year alone, Rama has directly attacked the judge and prosecutor in the case against Mayor Erion Veliaj, a Tirana judge who dismissed his defamation lawsuit against Lulzim Basha, and Shkodra prosecutor Elsa Gjeli for filing a criminal complaint against unauthorized cabins in the tourist village of Theth.
Like other cases, the attack on Judge Balliu brings back attention to the controversial procedure with unauthorized buildings and highlights the double standards followed by state institutions.
The RT Max company has used as a legal basis for its lawsuit the law on the administration of confiscated objects sent to parliament by the Rama government, as well as the decision of the Council of Ministers No. 589/2022 that legitimizes pre-emption against development entities.
BIRN learned that the company filed a lawsuit because, despite having paid the guarantee amount and awaiting the formalization of the contract that would enable it to purchase the additions to the facility based on the government's decision in autumn 2022, as has been done in similar cases, there has still been no official response from the authorities.
On July 31, Judge Hazbi Balliu accepted the request for a security of claim and decided to suspend the implementation of the decision of the Confiscated Objects Commission. Judge Balliu told BIRN that his decision was a standard procedure to prevent the alienation of property without giving the complainant the opportunity to request a review of the merits of the case in court.
The Prime Minister's Office, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Economy, Culture and Innovation did not respond to requests for comment on the case by the time of publication. Representatives of the RT Max company were unavailable. /BIRN/
