Good afternoon!

I am personally appearing at this press point today, because I think that the decisions we just made are very important ones in the context of the resilience and the response to the war-driven inflation rate, as well as part of our commitment to support and assist the most vulnerable and the neediest people, but also to support those on duty. To this end, we have decided a pay hike for all the State Police workers, starting from the entry-level police officer to  the police inspector level and to the mid-level officers. The entry-level police officers will see the highest salary hike by 15% and the mid-level officers will see their monthly wage go up by 7%. The same goes for the Republican Guard officers, the prison staff and police that will see their monthly salaries also increase. The same decision goes for the Fire and Rescue Service workers. The government has also decided to increase the monthly wages for the public administration, not only for the civil servants, but also for the whole support administration worker and all these decisions enter into force immediately.

So all these categories of workers will see their next monthly salary increased according to the specifications made under the respective decisions and the percentage hike based on the categories, but what is worth most highlighting is that the principle is all the same since day one; he who earns less benefits larger support.

On the other hand, the same applies to the state pensions that have been re-indexed twice this year after being adjusted in line with the cost of living and the state pensions have registered a 9.5% increase compared to the previous year and the pensions hike will be materialized in the next payment.

The same decisions apply to the households participating in social assistance and economic welfare schemes that will see the economic assistance payment increase by 10 %, with female family heads with two children, who will have their welfare benefit doubled, following an earlier government decision to double the economic assistance payment to the female family heads with three children.

Likewise, the government has decided that the older adults over 65 are entitled to double economic welfare benefits so that we can help them to best cope with the rising consumer prices and living costs, as well as indexation of the payment for the disabled people benefiting from state assistance.

This is an anti-crisis package – we think a complete one – made available by the government at this stage in response to the efforts to protect people as much as possible from the war-driven inflation. It was not the government the one that triggered the inflation rate to go up and the government can’t eliminate inflation, neither the Republic of Albania, nor the US government, the EU government, or the government of China or any other country around the world that have been globally affected by the inflation.

On the other hand, we will monitor the saving dynamic and to this end I would like to urge everyone to accept the logic and the mentality of this situation and try to save, because by saving it is not just that we pay less from our households budget or the budget of the state institutions, but we can save more energy, because it not simply a matter of how high the energy price will go, but it is a matter whether the markets will be able to offer electricity for us to purchase, and I am talking about not only Albania, but about whole Europe and the whole world.

-Mr. Prime Minister, your position towards the Russian aggression on Ukraine is already public, but what is going to be Albania’s political position if the government faces a demand from the Russian citizens who are fleeing their country to escape mobilization to fight in the Ukraine war?

PM Edi Rama:  They are welcome to Albania!

 

-Mr. Prime Minister, shortly before the cabinet meeting, Tom Doshi, your former ally already declared a persona non grata, was noticed while walking out of the government building. Did you meet Mr. Doshi and what did you discuss with him? Will you forge an alliance in the upcoming local elections?

 

PM Edi Rama: I am not aware of this at all and I am not aware of the individuals or anyone walking in and walking out this building. This is something I am not tasked with. I enter the building through a certain door and I do my part of my job here and I don’t watch the ones entering or exiting the building. It is probably your job to spy on them. It is not my job to control them.

 

-Mr. Prime Minister, you affirmed that you will press ahead with the proposed fiscal amnesty despite the objections. Would you finalize it despite the objections from the European Union, given that Albania has already embarked on a process following the launch of the accession negotiations and the country would have to align national legislation with the acquis communautaire and if the EU members reject it? How are Albanian emigrants supposed to move or transfer to Albania two million euros given that one can’t move 10,000 euros without declaring the amount to the border and customs officials? How are they supposed to declare illegal money if the EU member states oppose it?

 

PM Edi Rama: Are you siding with Albanians or what? I don’t understand who you are siding with in this case? Whose plight or woes are you highlighting, because I didn’t understand it? I am here to solve the plight of the Albanian citizens and these suppositions whether this or that, he or she would reject or oppose it, they are all nonsense. We are discussing the idea with everyone and we are trying to build the basis where we can find an accord. It would be great if we agree. If we don’t agree 100%, it wouldn’t be a problem. We are here to do our job and deliver on our tasks regarding Albanians, while never violating the norms, never violating the principles and without inventing things that have nothing to do with the legislation and have nothing to do with the EU.

As to “the illegal money”, I would like to clarify something for everyone. This is not about illegal money, but it is about savings generated from undeclared work. It is not about the proceeds of illegal activities. The law is clear about the illegal activities and the bill clearly defines and stipulates the categories that are excluded from the amnesty and I would urge you to show a bit more respect for the so-called “illegal money” of the migrants, I think, some more respect and more self-awareness that this is not a bill for me, it is not for the politicians. No politician will be allowed to be included in the amnesty. It is not legislation for the judges or the prosecutors, it is not legislation for the police officers, and it is not for the former officials having senior positions within the administration.

This is not the law for a caste, but it is devised to help those who have spent years of their lives abroad to save money.

I am here because I believe in what I have believed since day one when I embarked on this path and I still continue to believe even more than yesterday. That’s why I am here. What can I do? I can only share my truths with you, I can reveal my goals and it is up to you to transform them all into fairytales. However, there is one thing I can’t understand. This is a law demanded by over 60% of the citizens of this country, this is a law demanded by the migrants who suffer a lot to transfer their money to Albania, but you still worry that the EU or America could become angry? What are you worried about? We will do things right by certainly cooperating with them.

Thank you!