Today's joint meeting between the government and the Socialist Party parliamentary group was not as harmonious as it tried to appear. Sources told VNA that MP Erion Braçe was the only one to disrupt the peace, clashing with Prime Minister Edi Rama over the way the members of the Public Procurement Commission (PPC) were approved and voted on in the Assembly the day before.
According to sources, Brace objected to the fact that MPs were asked to vote for candidates they did not know and for whom there had been no prior discussion.
"We voted for people we don't know. Bring us the things ready and ask us to vote with our eyes closed," Braçe is reported to have said during the closed-door meeting.
Rama's reaction was immediate.
"They are the government's verdict. What can I do if the EU asks us to? We didn't bring it to the Assembly at all."
But Braçe did not back down and continued his argument with the Prime Minister. At that very moment, according to VNA sources, Rama lost his patience.
"Shut up. Don't talk about me. Go away, you bastard."
Afterwards, the Prime Minister also issued a message that was interpreted as a warning to all Socialist MPs.
"I'll give you an example. Until now, I thought your neurons weren't working properly."
According to sources, the clash between Rama and Braça was the only moment that disrupted the calm of the meeting, while the rest of the deputies preferred not to intervene.
Another detail that did not go unnoticed was the silence of Elisa Spiropali. After the public clash with Edi Rama at the last meeting of the parliamentary group, where the Prime Minister reminded her that "the first time you did not come to vote, the second time you made a mistake and the third time there is no way, you are out of this group", while not even allowing her to reply, the Speaker of the Parliament chose this time not to say a word. If in recent weeks she has appeared among the most active figures in public debates within the Socialist Party, in the closed-door meeting, she apparently preferred to speak only when the microphones were approached, while in front of Rama she chose silence.
The clash with Braça also showed another side of the meeting. Despite his efforts to project unity, Rama did not hide his irritation with critical voices within his parliamentary group. The phrase “I will make an example”, articulated after the debate with Braça, implied that the prime minister is increasingly less willing to tolerate rebellions within the Socialist Party. After the warning against Spiropali and the outburst against Braça, today’s closed-door meeting signaled that Rama seems determined to impose complete discipline on his parliamentary group, at a time when critical voices within the majority are becoming increasingly visible.
