Press statement by the Minister of Justice Etilda Gjonaj on the weekly results of the anti-graft fight:

The anticorruption structures, in close collaboration with other law enforcement agencies, have continued intensive work aimed at documenting and cracking down on corrupt practices and abuse of office at all levels of public administration across the country.

The Anticorruption Task Force Task, during this week too, has been in full swing, exercising control and inspection actions in a number of public administration institutions tasked with delivering public services to citizens.

The inspection actions have been conducted on reports and denunciations that various citizens have made via the online platform “Albania We Want”.

Namely, control and inspection actions have been carried out in a number of public institutions in Tirana district:

Koço Gliozheni Obstetrics and Gynaecology of University Hospital of Tirana;

The State Inspectorate of Environment, Forestry, Waters and Tourism- Regional Directorate of Tirana;

The State Health Inspectorate – Tirana Regional Directorate.

In their final reports on the abovementioned institutions, the inspection teams have recommended disciplinary actions against 36 individuals and dismissal of 15 employees.

The inspection teams have recommended dismissal of the following:

The chief inspector of the Tirana Directorate of the Inspectorate of Environment, Forestry, Waters and Tourism, as well as the dismissal of 8 forestry inspectors;

Disciplinary measures have recommended against 13 other employees of this institution.

Meanwhile, disciplinary measures have been recommended against 8 member of the administrative and management personnel of the Koço Gliozheni Obstetrics and Gynaecology of University Hospital of Tirana.

The Ministry of Justice in cooperation with the Anticorruption Task Force has referred to Tirana Prosecutor’s Office a report on the violations of public procurement procedures by the General Directorate of the Prison Administration. The inspection has founded suspicious actions and procedures pursued by the Bid Evaluation Commission and the inspection report has been forwarded to the Prosecutor’s Office for further proceedings.

A praiseworthy and effective job has been done by the State Police that in cooperation with the Prosecutor’s Office have discovered 27 corruption practices and abuse of office cases by the state administration officials and employees.

Some 37 individuals have been charged on counts of corruption and abuse of office, with four suspects attested and detained, while 30 offenders are released on bail pending trial;

3 of them have been declared wanted;

The administrative investigation and inspections in the country’s prisons have discovered several cases of law violation and abuse of office by the Prison Administration employees.

The Internal Control Service at the Prison Administration has recommended administrative and disciplinary actions against three officials of prisons:

1 director

1 prison police chief

1 official of internal service

The results of the anti-graft fight are evident to the broad public and citizens, who are witnessing the special attention the government is attaching to this major and crucial challenge in the efforts to strengthen the rule of law and the country’s European future.

These results and their direct effect on the public’s perception about the corruption level in the country encourage us to press ahead with the same persistence and rigorousness towards public administration employee or citizen who commit corrupt actions.

We are convinced that there is no place for complacency and that this intensive action should continue permanently at all levels of administration.

Everyone must be assured that the era of impunity has ended once and for all.

Thank you!