Dear fellow citizens,
My dear social network friends and followers. As this year is drawing to an end, I hope you would make some time for me to share with you a reflection and extend a wish!
The outgoing year was a very busy one, with many particularly difficult moments that tested our patience, hurt our hopes and, most recently, strongly rattled the earth under our feet.
The November 26 earthquake was the tragic climax of a rather tough year. 51 dead, around 1000 others injured, thousands of families that lost their homes in less than one minute, tens of thousands of others who abandoned their houses in Tirana and Durres under the unprecedented nightmare and anxiety that plagued Albania’s heart and that could have brought anyone to their knees and could have crippled our country and send it many years back in time.
Spending long days and night amid rubble where searches for survivors were underway, among crowds of people taking the streets, in the dark and in the cold, in hospitals’ corridors, the victims’ funerals, the temporary camps and later at hotels, rental homes and winter tents, where thousands of homeless people were housed and sheltered in record time, I couldn’t help but think that it could have been worse, even much worse.
In a sense, it was a miracle that the death toll was not much higher, or the number of the injured who succumbed to wounds later in hospitals was not much higher, that the number of apartment buildings and private homes, which – God forbid it – could have buried their occupants, was not more catastrophic. This was a miracle by the hand of God, which stopped right there, as well as by the hands of thousands of our own hands and the hands of our friends, who rushed to stand by us on that very tough day.
The prompt response by our search and rescue teams, troops, State Police, the firefighters, medics and nurses saved dozens of quake survivors, whose lives were hanging by a thread, and healed thousands of minor and serious wounds that hundreds of injured had sustained due to earthquake.
Thanks also to the solidarity of hundreds of thousands of Albanian citizens, who immediately acted to support affected people, as well as thanks to the solidarity and increased security provided by hundreds of rescuers from the friendly countries in the region, Europe and even across the Atlantic, the miracle of revived hope in the midst of gloom happened.
Whole Albania, divided by the polluted and quarreling politics and the malicious and disorienting media, united once again. Like never before, Albanians came together in the face of a tragedy that showed us how small and vulnerable we are, but how strong we can be when united we face evil.
We lived unforgettably memorable days and nights, exhaustive in their all seriousness and extraordinary for the emotional burden.
We saw with our own eyes the precious value of humanism, the stretched out hands towards each other to unite with each other for each other. And we succeeded.
Except the lost lives we can’t bring back, except the injuries we couldn’t prevent, beyond the devastation we could not prevent, we managed to survive with dignity and quickly the tragic shock.
We succeeded in the efforts to leave no unfortunate alone, no family homeless, and not to remain hostage to the emergency camps, where despair, confusion, insecurity and administrative and media mischief and unscrupulousness come together.
We managed to provide shelter and warm meal and clear housing perspective for thousands of affected families within a very short time. Thousands of people of every social category were housed and provided with optimum conditions, special health care for the sick people and dedicated education service to schoolchildren. Thousands of other affected people were housed in rental homes, often much better than the ones they lost or seriously damaged by the earthquake, and thousands of others were sheltered in winter tents set up the courtyards of their inhabitable houses in rural areas.
We successfully managed to cope with the natural calamity through the immediate emergency response, much quicker and way to better than ever before in this country, although never before in the past 30 years a natural disaster has been so deadly and scary.
In the same way, we will succeed in the rebuilding challenge again, although never before has an Albanian government ever borne such a huge burden like this massive reconstruction in a crazy race against time.
But we will certainly succeed, because we are today much stronger we used to be prior to the earthquake. We are all aware of our power as a state and as a society. I myself, today, am a lot more convinced of the power of this governing majority and more determined to co-govern this country with you, ordinary citizens.
The Holy Books say the earthquake are misfortunes given to people so that they may seek to repent and amend their conduct. But beyond the debate over having or not having faith in God and thanks to the positive energy that was generated as a national response to the devastating earthquake, in my eyes this is the moment of a fresh start to generate a lot more positive energies and score more accomplishments for the country and our children.
I have to confess that the idea of using this moment as an opportunity for a fresh start came to me gradually since the absurd political conflict of the first half of the year. Later on, when the European Council’s refusal to open the accession negotiations with Albania triggered a psychological earthquake in this society inextricably linked to the European dream, this idea strengthened within me as a need for a fresh start. But the November 26 earthquake, with the responsive strength and the unifying energy it generated marked the very moment of the new beginning for the Albania we want.
Dear friends,
We should by no means loose this fresh momentum to capitalize on the opportunity to deepen the economic and social rebirth process this dramatic year-end has created.
We have no time to waste! We have to vigorously move forward and by wasting no time do now and every day more work that should not be left for tomorrow.
With the reconstruction of the quake-affected homes as the highlight of the coming year, we should turn 2020 into a year of significant results for our common home, Albania we all want.
2020 should be the year that should mark the exemplary healing of the earthquake wounds. By end of 2021, all those wounds should have turned into the embodiment of Albanian strength, faith and hope in future.
Every rural household that has lost their private homes should move into a new, better home within 2020.
By first half of 2020, the work to construct the new residential neighborhoods in the quake-hit cities should begin.
School buildings, kindergartens, health care centers seriously damaged by the earthquake should be reconstructed from scratch by next September. Schoolchildren in the hardest-hit areas should start the new academic year 2020-2021 in new and much better schools they used to attend prior to the earthquake.
The rebuilding program will be fully implemented without compromising the government’s main priorities and objectives during this term in office and 2020 should mark the year of a major turning point in terms of the public service delivery.
The digital revolution in the delivery of public services in Albania due in January with an initial group of a range of public services, will be a tremendous help in this regard.
This year should put an end to the story of applications for countless documents and certificates every citizen has been forced to provide in order to become eligible for certain public services over the past 30 years.
The documents that are issued by the state offices in order to complete an application file should now be provided by each state office themselves.
From passive hosts behind the service counters, the public administration employees should now assist every citizen and complete their applications by providing every required document issued by the state institutions.
Every citizen should now apply online and report to withdraw his required documents within a legal deadline. In this way, many citizens will be spared a lot of troubles and objective impossibility, including the Albanian citizens living abroad, who will no longer be forced to stay in queues anytime they return back home to apply for a certain public service be delivered.
They have had enough with the countless wanderings, unbearable bribes, endless queues and the enormous stress they have been forced to suffer over the past 30 years anytime they had to apply for a document or a certificate issued by the state offices. End of 2020 should definitely mark the end of this 30-year chapter of endless piles of paperwork under the people’s armpit, who apply for a public service to be delivered.
2020 should mark the year when every wealth and any proceeds of crime and illicit trafficking of every kind should be scanned. To this end, we are ready for the exemplary offensive against the organized crime and the underworld bosses, who will face the power of the law.
As the new year begins, the state’s earthquake will hit and rattle the foundations of the underworld that defies the community, society and this country, which does not deserve the stain of their filth in the eyes of the world. Whoever has committed crimes must prove the source of wealth, or must lose that wealth.
2020 should mark the beginning of a new Albanian history in terms of administration and development of the national wealth like Albania’s wonderful coast.
Occupation of beaches and the impossibility of the common citizens to decide on their will or based on what they can afford whether they would choose a public or a private beach space should end.
But this is just the beginning, because any further senseless and poor quality construction that is not in compliance with the ambition of tourist Albania should be banned. Albania needs projects and investments that translate our coastline’s potential into a source of transforming economic power and national pride.
2020 should be recorded as the year of serious foreign investments in the country’s coastline and the first-quality domestic investment to build hospitality capacities for the luxurious tourism that generates more revenue and creates higher-paying jobs.
2020 should be the year when the property issue for tens of thousands of families all over the country should be finally addressed. They have been waiting for 30 years as they cannot either put up for sale or apply for funding by the state or financial institutions for rural development as they have yet to become the legitimate owners of their own land, because it is impossible for them to register their forefathers’ land.
Enough is enough!
But it is not only that.
Thanks to the major legal amendments that will be adopted by Parliament in early January we will start to tackle tens of thousands of pending cases concerning the legalization of the land and the house because of the legal obstructions.
2020 should mark a series of major infrastructure and energy investments.
We are already to jump-start a number of major projects with a significant impact on economy and employment during their implementation, also with a transforming power for Albania. The new international Vlora airport, the new Thumanë-Rrogozhinë highway, the Llogara tunnel project, two huge voltaic parks in the country’s coast are only a few to mention in a string of new investments due to commence in 2020, which, together with the ongoing investment, comprise the largest volume of investments in infrastructure over the past 30 years.
We expect new oil reserves to be discovered by the company Shell, while the Italian company ENI will begin its oil explorations in the block of Dumrea in 2020.
Within 2021, we will begin to collect significant revenue for the state coffers, thanks to the very positive developments in the country’s oil sector. Next decade will bring about a major change to the Albanian economy.
We have significantly strengthened contracts in favour of the state and will continue to fight decisively for a fairer distribution of profits between companies and the state, based on international best practices.
These words may sound like a year-end holiday fantasy today! But no. Based on realistic projections and not on the optimistic ones, they hint to a decade that will positively reverse parameters of the Albanian economy thanks to new developments in exploration and discovery of the country’s underground resources.
Not only that, the digital revolution will extend to the fight against informality, and in addition to online fiscalization of transactions, 2020 should also be the prelude to a radical transformation through the Track and Trace system installation; this system will not only finally unearth all 30-year-old tricks in the sale of oil, spirits, coffee, water, cigarettes, medicines but will also enhance the food safety in this country.
2020 should mark the final transformation of Albania’s higher education infrastructure.
Not only the university dormitories will take a completely different look from what they used to have prior to the last year’s student protest, but with the opening of the great construction site of the Tirana university campus, we will prove everyone that we say what we can do and we do what we say.
The Pact for the University is an irreversible priority and has nothing to do with the political or media temperature. I don’t know how many of those joining the past December protest still recall their protest. Yet, I know that there is not a single day of my work that passes without remembering my commitment on behalf of the government to students and their living conditions.
In other words, Student City, the Security Academy and the University of Arts will be as beautiful as the new national stadium within 2022. Albania will have the most beautiful university campus in the region. It was a done deal in the case of the new stadium and so will be case of the University Campus.
Dear fellow citizens,
Since it is now the turn of the last priority for 2020, I would urge you to read straight in my eyes, as I look everyone into their eyes!
Now, two words about myself:
I am not a heavenly being.
I have never presumed to think myself infallible. Quite on the contrary. I am more fallible than you, most probably because I am taller!
I have never thought of myself as infallible. On the contrary, I am more fallible than you, since because of my duty I have to make more decisions than any of you, so I have a greater probability of error than any of you.
However, I have never done a mistake deliberately in order to take advantage of anything to the detriment of the people or this country that I have the great honor to lead.
Whoever closely knows me, whoever works with me, knows quite well I never insist on a wrong opinion or direction.
I listen to the counterarguments far more than it seems. When they are convincing ones, I backtrack. I don’t hesitate to apologize when hurting someone, or when weighing a decision wrongfully. You may well recall the fact that I have publicly apologized in certain cases. I don’t remember whether my predecessor has done the same, yet this is not the meter I use to measure myself and I don’t want you to use it to measure me.
I haven’t delivered on time on every promise I’ve made. There are still promises I have yet to fulfill. However, in no case I have promised something knowing that it cannot be done just to gain some votes as it is commonly said when talking about politicians’ promises. Never!
First and foremost, this is because I am not the kind of politicians who tell lies just to receive votes, but I belong to that race of politicians whose strength of confidence and dream for change has led them to politics. Second, just imagine. Just go backwards in time for a second and think why on earth I would have to tell lies, or make promises about things I don’t believe myself when thanks to the power God has blessed me with, and the political force I lead I could have defeated my rivals even by the quarter of the promises I have made!
I know I am to be criticized and you should know I am more dissatisfied than anyone else with my job, even with the government I head. However, I don’t simply deserve the endless mud and slanderous remarks about alleged thefts and dirty deals.
Beyond jokes, which are half meant true, the other half meant true is the fact that I am not poor. But I have never dreamed of becoming rich. I don’t live to earn, but I earn enough to lead a life. I don’t live for luxury, but for my passions. Life for me is an opportunity I have been provided with to leave a legacy through the gifts I have been blessed with.
I consider the position I hold today as the greatest privilege of all that was ever awarded to someone to lead his own nation on a part of the path towards the future.
Many of you, social network friends and followers, used to ask me in the aftermath of the earthquake, where did I find this strength? This is where I do find it, at the feeling that every cell of the privilege I have been given to be your chosen one to serve in the highest office and the passion to do the best I can for everyone so that this becomes a better country for you, for my children and your children.
Am I an enemy of the free speech?
Has it ever happened that the free speakers defeat my free speech?
No, I am not an enemy of the free speech. Yes, I am a sworn enemy of ignorance and vulgarity, which have also contaminated the sources of freedom of expression in this country, poisoning you and my family equally on daily basis with all sorts of mischief and monstrosities.
Since we are talking about this, I have neither thought, nor called for, nor supported any laws restricting freedom of expression and speech. I have voted in parliament, along with the political force I head, a law that empowers victims of defamation to defend themselves from aggression launched by the online media against individuals and readers of these online media outlets to learn the truth about the unjustly accused people. The anti-defamation law is not a thorn in the flesh of the publishers, journalists and political commentators. It will simply remind them that their freedom is not a weapon to publicly violate the human dignity of anyone they wish to.
I may sound arrogant to many of you. This is probably because I believe very much my strongly-held belief and not consensus and I am very persistent in my beliefs. But perhaps also because the stubbornness to defend my beliefs or perseverance to live up to end of the bargain make me sound arrogant. Maybe I’m, I don’t know, but that doesn’t make me any less honest in doing my job.
Why I am telling you all these in this year-end reflection?
Because I would like to talk about the regional Schengen as one of our top priorities and I can’t help but admit that I have been hurt by a lot of Kosovo friends, followers of this social website, but I also can’t help but tell them first and foremost that for no price, by no means and for nothing in this world I would ever betray my nation, my country, my people.
And by my people I mean not only people of Albania, but Kosovo people too; when I say my country I mean not only Albania, but Kosovo too.
Am I a traitor, dear Kosovo brothers and sisters?
But how, when, why and for what reason in the world except the reason of the irrationality of those who are unwilling to listen, unwilling to read and unwilling to understand the simple truth of a public, transparent, politic and international process that has been already launched five years ago.
Apparently others have a skill that I don’t have and know how to successfully and publicly play the disgusting role of the ardent patriot, the Albanian patriot who ardently fights and kills for his homeland whenever it comes to the Serbs.
I know that moment is always on their side, whenever they play with patriotic emotions and lies and when the unforgettable wounds of the past are devilishly touched to ignite the dazzling fire in the eyes of people affected by the tragic past.
But time is not on their side. Time is on the side of the right and the truths that can be either concealed or distorted temporarily, but they never melt away or be undone.
The regional Schengen is not a new Yugoslavia as those who can’t form a two-party government in Kosovo claim. Because when it comes to joining forces to govern Kosovo, the division of cabinet positions seems to be much more important than Kosovo that has been left at a crossroads, with no strategy and no government in place. But thank God they are all well united, regardless the party, also with some “masters” in Tirana to turn Kosovo against “Vucic’s brother” in Albania, irritating people in Kosovo with insanity pathetic with patriotic nonsense.
The regional Schengen is neither a Serbian plan to economically occupy the region, as some in Kosovo claim as they play their political game with the country, destroying Kosovo’s reputation and losing respect in the eyes of the precious American and European friends, without whom Kosovo would never have been born. What else could be more painful rather than listening those irreplaceable friends saying that Kosovo politicians know what do they want for their own selves, but they don’t know what do they want for Kosovo!
The regional Schengen is neither, God forbid it, a program or an accord to pardon crimes committed by Milosevic’s bloodthirsty regime, to forget the Reçak massacre and absolve the past aggressor and put an end to the political battle with Serbia on accepting the reality and recognizing sovereign Kosovo.
Whoever says these and other abominations of this kind, including the one alleging that I have sought to divide Kosovo, is either totally incompetent to successfully take the political battle with Serbia, or full to the brim with what he has benefited from Kosovo and does no longer care about the future of the people, as he might have provided enough for his own future for seven next generations. Or both. But whoever trusts those who fill the air with this kind of patriotic poison, he is wrong.
The regional Schengen is a historic must today, when our battle, and not ours alone, but all countries in this region, is to expand the space of freedom of movement of people, good, capital and services.
Only those who do not wish to see, who do not want to realize that the Regional Schengen is the only way for both Albania and Kosovo to break the border barriers between themselves and ensure complete free movement of people, goods, services and capital between the two states.
Regional Schengen brings nothing new in terms of political relations between Serbia and Kosovo nor in terms of political relations between Albania and Serbia regarding Kosovo. Our attitude in this regard has not changed and will never change. We are one and share the same attitude.
I do strongly believe that the Regional Schengen not only does no harm to Kosovo in its political battle with Serbia to reach a final, just and complete agreement on its recognition by Serbia, but, quite the contrary, it helps Kosovo.
Whoever among these gentlemen who kindle the fire against the Regional Schengen because they foresee negative economic consequences both for Albania and Kosovo, they simply don’t know what they are talking about.
Whereas whoever opposes the Regional Schengen because of the past one has to ask him how self-exclusion from an initiative that has been discussed and agreed throughout the Berlin Process over the past five years could help Kosovo, which has been always represented at the highest level?
We, Albania has succeeded in convincing Serbia, I personally have managed to convince the President of Serbia to lay down no conditions that divide us with Serbia regarding Kosovo and conditions that divide Kosovo and Servia, neither to pretend that Albania and Kosovo should not achieve an agreement on the free movement of people and goods if Kosovo refuses to do the same with Serbia.
The day Serbia won’t stick with this essential point, Albania would no longer participate in this process.
This means that the Regional Schengen provides both Albania and Kosovo to do what we have failed to do over the years, because not only Serbia, but neither Washington, nor Brussels have allowed us to do so and they have reacted angrily anytime we have mentioned the idea of opening the border between us and creating a single economic zone.
I apologize, but if we were to speak by providing arguments, rather than emotionally, I have to say that I have yet to listen a single rational argument opposing this regional project, fully supported by the United States of America and the European Union. As I have not yet come across bloody post-conflict history of Europe and around the world any occasion when peace has been achieved through war rhetoric, years after the war is over and weapons have given way to politics and diplomacy.
Next year, the European Union will make available 1.2 billion euros in funds to support regional cooperation. But even if not, strengthening the regional cooperation and participation of both Albanian states in this new cooperation dimension represents an additional premise that not only economy of our two countries will grow, but the overall climate in the region will also improve to create more favorable conditions for the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue itself. Not only that, since I am completely convinced that the more both Albania and Kosovo involve in this regional dimension, the more we will enhance the dimension of our reality internationally also in the eyes of Serbia, and the more would we help ourselves on the path towards Kosovo’s final and complete recognition by everyone.
As I stated at the very beginning, we have no time to waste in every aspect. The earthquake was a strong impetus to every one of us to generate more positive energies and spend a lot less negative energies. The opportunities are all to be exploited and not wasted and no opportunity to expand the path of the future can be wasted in the name of the past.
Brothers and sisters,
As we are about to leave 2019 behind and as we rightly are eager for more than what this outgoing tough year brought us, just recall where we were just ten years ago.
I know and I am totally aware that many of you would angrily react telling who knows how many things about the world that flies and Albania that barely walks, but it is not like that. This is not the case at all and I am ready to argue with you about it day and night.
But this is not the case to annoy you by providing figures and facts, but it is the case to tell you that while a new year is coming along with a new decade ahead of us, just think together with me how and how much we can do all together for Albania four of five times more than we did in the outgoing decade. It is not only possible, but it is also the thing we should all do.
God sends light and earthquake, but He doesn’t send gifts to earth. It is us the ones who should do it better, safer and more prosperous for our children.
It is our duty not to fear the challenging twists and turns of the future and not slip down the spiral of the past.
It is our challenge not to give up at difficulties that may arise in our endeavor to achieve results and not become complacent about results that can be achieved in the blink of an eye in the chats at coffee bars and media tents only.
It is us and only us the ones who should not lose patience and refrain from slurs, defamation via the communication outlets as they may contaminate and become a chronic condition for our children too.
This country has it all for us to succeed in the difficult uphill climb to make Albania a normal, social and functioning state. But we should have the strong will, determination and awareness that this takes time, patience, hard work and unification.
We should stand united in goals, not political convictions. A unification of positive forces, not political forces. Unification to live in a country where no one should ever be alone.
I would like to wholeheartedly thank each and every one, you that have trusted, supported and encouraged me, but also you who haven’t trusted me or have misjudged, but have yet taken the trouble to monitor my performance.
At the end of the day, time goes by, years pass, the Prime Ministers come and go, everyone is momentary in this world, but what there remains is Albania and our nation. Let’s all together continue doing our best for Albania and the Albanian nation and may the best happens to you and your beloved ones.
Happy New Year 2020 may it bring health and prosperity for your families.
God bless Albania!