I was caught by a piece of news yesterday that gave pomp to the act of dismissing a Deputy Minister by the Minister of the Interior because the latter was caught smoking in a closed public environment.
First, the Minister must clarify with the country’s leader because the responsibility for dismissing and appointing deputy ministers lies with him, not her.
But this detail is of little importance, what matters is the message that the dear Minister gave us on her first day of work.
Albania has been described as the most problematic country on the continent in terms of the dimensions that organized crime has taken. This characterization has been made by a series of European and US institutions, but also by various non-governmental organizations or by various governments such as England, Belgium, the Netherlands, etc.
Albania is also considered the main gateway for cocaine, which, after being processed in laboratories set up in various parts of the country, is then sent throughout Europe.
And of course, these facts have some terrible consequences for the country, because the business in question circulates billions of euros per year, money that enters the economy by creating unfair competition, unreasonable price inflation (especially of real estate which is then used as a means of money laundering).
The consequences are even more terrible in the social aspect, where the models with which young people grow up are now the faces of gangsters who roam in expensive vehicles, traffic drugs and kill each other or their rivals on the streets of Europe. Gangs openly fight each other and very often we have witnessed explosions in broad daylight and in the middle of the square where innocent citizens have lost their lives.
Even worse are the political consequences, where as a result of the strengthening of gangs or cartels, more precisely, and the regional electoral system, unknown characters emerge as the most voted people in the country and it is impossible to make a difference in the electoral result where poverty is great because the guys show up with bags of money a few days before the elections and close all hope, not to mention the pressures, the euros that are thrown to buy media, to carry out local or national electoral maneuvers, etc.
In short, Albania has a serious problem with organized crime, which our Interior Minister has apparently decided to solve with the fight against tobacco.
I can already imagine the trouble that the Çelaj gang in Elbasan, or the Bajraj gang in Shkodra, or the lads from Fier or Vlora will cause when the police raid the bars where they go in the evenings after they’ve finished dealing drugs and hunting down opponents, and fine everyone for smoking and drinking in public.
And surely, just like the news of the sensational dismissal of the smoking Deputy Minister, this action will also be broadcast live on all TVs, on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, and there will certainly be debates with special guests, among whom there may be some qualified expert, probably foreign or educated abroad, who, after enduring the battle between those who want the battle against tobacco to be harsher and those who want it to be softer, will shout in English:
Hey, it’s the cocaine stupid!
Besjan Pesha është një studiues i shkencave politike dhe njohës i mirë i politikës në rajonin e Ballkanit. Ai ka mbaruar Masterin për Shkenca Politike pranë Universitetit të Tiranës dhe ka një eksperiencë të gjatë si aktivist i shoqërisë civile, duke filluar me themelimin e Lëvizjes Mjaft e më pas me themelimin e Nismës Thurje.
Besjani gjithashtu ka një eksperiencë në politikën aktive si edhe në qeverisje ku ka shërbyer në disa pozicione të rëndësishme përgjatë viteve 2007-2013.
Së fundmi ai punon si konsulent politik në rajon dhe gjatë kohës së lirë kontribuon për shteg.org.
