Prime Minister Edi Rama’s remarks at the reception with members of delegations from 150 countries around the world attending the Electoral Congress of the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) that took place in Albania:

Honourable president and dear brother Mohamed,

You mentioned Muhammad Ali Pasha, considered by many to be the founder of modern Egypt and best described and praised Tirana and Albania, but you are the Muhammad Pasha of the International Weightlifting Federation and with your name and the title you bear I am sure that the Weightlifting Federation will enjoy its best days.

This is all about Tirana and Albania and I am very honored to be here with you tonight and offer you this wonderful venue of the king’s palace and tell you this is the only royal palace where a king couldn’t sleep a single night because when the construction of the palace completed, the king had to leave.

This is of course a good thing for everyone because all the guests can feel like kings and queens here and it is our hospitality to make sure that the guests feel like kings and queens.

I must also say that our weightlifters are really a source of inspiration because they have demonstrated that great talents can be produced by tiny countries like Albania through hard work and discipline since this makes the difference. I would like to tell you dear Mohamed and I would like to tell each and every one of you here, dear friends, that we feel really honored and proud to have hosted this great and important congress in Albania, but it will not had happened without the contribution of the president of the Albanian Weightlifting Federation.

Our friend Elezi was really impatient, very committed and engaged in the preparation efforts to host this congress in the best possible way and in the process he has bothered all cabinet members, even has threatened the government, saying it would have to deal with the muscles of all Federation members should a single member of the delegations from member countries of the International Weightlifting Federation were to be denied their visa. And of course this shouldn’t have happened and therefore we acted as quickly as possible. In case you want to have a country where no visas are required at all, Albania is the right one. You travelled to Albania without applying for any visas and we clearly demonstrated that you did not commit any terrorist acts or criminal offences. On the contrary, you were wonderful people. You were wonderful guests and therefore it would take just an authorization from the IWF President for you to visit and spend your holidays in Albania anytime you wish to do so. As soon as you arrive at the airport, just show the authorization issued by the IWF President and you won’t need to show passports, let alone visas, because we are fed up with this world with its borders being closed, with visas and all sorts of certificates people need to provide. Things are easy here.

To conclude I would like to say something that is not poetical at all, but it is stipulated on the Albanians’ earliest constitution, namely the Kanun which constitutes the first ever written laws of Albanians, with the opening paragraph stipulating that “an Albanian’s house is the dwelling of God and the guest.” Exactly, “Hallelujah”  and as far as God is concerned, since He has yet to come, then guests are God. You are all friends, so just enjoy the status of being Gods in Albania until you fly back to your countries, where you might encounter problems with your own governments there, which could possibly be not that passionate about weightlifting, because they are weak.

Again, enjoy your stay in Tirana and Albania! Thank you!