The head of SPAK addressed the High Prosecutorial Council today, stating that up to now there has been no problematic situation or pressure from political rhetoric that could violate the competencies of the institution he heads.
According to him, political statements in themselves do not constitute a threat to the work of the Special Prosecution Office, while concern would only arise if the rhetoric were accompanied by concrete legal initiatives that could affect the institution's competencies.
"Rhetoric in itself does not constitute a threat. To understand when it will be concerning, it is when it will be accompanied by a legal situation that may affect the competences of the institution. At the moment, I think it is not problematic. If we have any such situation, drafts or legal projects, we will raise our voice and make it public. We will also convey this opinion and concern to the KLP", said the head of SPAK.
However, while SPAK says there is no intervention at the moment, concrete initiatives related to changes in legislation have been launched in the Parliament.
Following the "Balluku" case, where the Constitutional Court did not reach the necessary majority and the judges were divided in a 4-4 vote, rejecting Prime Minister Edi Rama's request, Socialist MPs have proposed changes to Article 242 of the Criminal Procedure Code.
According to Ulsi Manja's proposal, the judge will not be able to impose suspension from office for some of the highest state functions. The change aims to prevent the suspension from office of the President of the Republic, the Prime Minister, members of the Council of Ministers, the Ombudsman, the head of the Supreme State Audit Office and the Governor of the Bank of Albania.
This initiative has opened a debate on the relationship between justice reform and possible limitations on the powers of judicial bodies to intervene against senior state officials.
