Every early September, with the start of the political year, the well-worn ritual of the "war" against nepotism within the ranks of the Socialists returns. After leading the country for more than a decade and a half, Prime Minister Edi Rama has chosen this time to increase the dose of rhetorical pressure, proposing extreme measures such as wiretapping and criminal prosecution for his own MPs who interfere in employment in the administration.
In the meeting with the cabinet and parliamentary group, Rama issued direct threats, proposing that legislators' messages about employment favors be legally treated as criminal offenses and investigated through wiretapping.
"I will ask you to vote that if you write an SMS to employ people, it will be considered a criminal offense. I will look you in the eye and ask you to vote it as a criminal offense," Rama declared in ultimatum tones to the MPs who listened to him in silence.
With the same optimism as in every previous September, the prime minister claimed that this time the selection in the state will be subject only to ability and not personal acquaintances:
"The merit scale will prevent your tribe and friends from passing you by via WhatsApp, but will allow those who deserve it to be employed in public administration ," he said.
However, the irony of this latest "revolution" lies in the contrast with reality. While the level of verbal threats increases from year to year, moving from calls for awareness to proposals for wiretapping and imprisonment of the majority's own deputies, the employment system remains the same. After 14 years in power, the promise to eliminate "realtors" through legal threats seems more like another propaganda show than a real will for change.
