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01-03-2026
TIRANA: Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama late on Thursday dismissed his deputy, Belinda Balluku, who faces accusations of manipulating public tenders, allegations that have sparked opposition protests.
A special prosecution office targeting corruption and organized crime, known as SPAK, indicted Balluku in December on suspicion of interfering in the awarding of two construction contracts in 2021 worth more than 200 million euros.
Parliament is expected to decide on March 5 whether to eliminate her immunity, which would allow SPAK to arrest her. Albania, which wants to join the European Union by 2030, faces pressure from the bloc to tackle corruption.
Balluku, who held the positions of deputy prime minister and infrastructure minister, denies wrongdoing.
Rama, who has been in power since 2013, stood by her for months and did not give a reason for dismissing her on Thursday in a reshuffle of seven roles in his Socialist Party administration including the defense and foreign ministers.
“The Prime Minister has clarified since the beginning of this term that reshuffles might be more frequent, while the last nearly four months he has refused three times the resignation of Mrs. Balluku,” government spokesperson, Manjola Hasa, told media in an emailed statement
Balluku has been seen as a rising star who was favored by Rama as a potential successor. Since her indictment, the country’s biggest opposition party, the Democratic Party, has held protests demanding the resignation of Rama, whose government has been hit by several corruption scandals over the last year.
Protesters have thrown petrol bombs, and police and demonstrators have been injured.
European Union officials have told media they were looking closely at Rama’s handling of corruption cases and that the country’s fight against crime and corruption are critical to the Balkan country’s bid to join the bloc by 2030.
Earlier, Police in the Albanian capital, Tirana, fired tear gas and used water cannon as protesters clashed with security forces during demonstrations to demand the resignation of Prime Minister Edi Rama.
Demonstrators hurled Molotov cocktails and fireworks at the prime minister’s office on Friday before marching towards parliament, where they were confronted by anti-riot police.
Fierce clashes lasted for about two hours in the streets surrounding the legislature, according to a journalist with media who was at the scene of the violence. Police said about 30 people were arrested, while the opposition Democratic Party said about 40 of its supporters had been detained.
Protests in the streets of the capital have broken out on several occasions since the indictment in December of Deputy Prime Minister Belinda Balluku by a special prosecution unit. Balluku, a close associate of Rama, was suspended over a corruption scandal that is now being investigated.
Several former ministers in Rama’s governments have also been targeted by corruption probes.
Waving Albanian and opposition party flags, thousands gathered on Friday in protest, chanting “Rama, go away” and “Rama in jail”.
“We will save Albania from Edi Rama, who has plunged the country into poverty and corruption,” said opposition Democratic Party leader Sali Berisha.
“Let them know that even if they go behind the sun, we will find them and punish them with the full force of the law,” Berisha said.
Interior Minister Albana Kociu condemned the unrest, accusing the protesters of “vandalism” and saying that it was a “crime” to attack police. (Int’l Monitoring Desk)
