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The CEZ-DIA case, VOA: I wasted three hours in SPAK, the connection with Kastriot Ismailaj and the accusation of Drita e Prifti

2023-02-22 20:29:39Aktualitet SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX
The CEZ-DIA case, VOA: I wasted three hours in SPAK, the connection with
Ilir Meta speaking to the media after leaving SPAK

In Albania, the chairman of the Freedom Party, Ilir Meta, was summoned today to the Special Prosecutor's Office against Organized Crime and Corruption, to give explanations regarding the old issue of the agreement between the Czech company CEZ, which bought in 2009 the Albanian company energy distribution, and the DIA company, for debt collection. Mr. Meta has often found himself in the past, under public accusations for his connections with the DIA administrator, Kastriot Ismailaj, who was sentenced to prison in 2017. As before, he also today rejected any claims of his implication in this case, talking about actions with a political background on the part of the Special Prosecutor's Office.

The Special Prosecutor's Office reopened the CEZ-DIA case in 2019, after a denunciation by the lawyer of Distribution Operator Romeo Kara, as well as after several media articles. Former president Meta, was called today precisely about this issue. His name has often been bandied about in the past for his ties to the DIA administrator, especially in 2015, when the case became part of the public and political debate.

The former Minister of Economy, the late Dritan Prifti, then accused Mr. Meta of directly influencing Ismailaj to benefit from the contract for the collection of CEZ debts. An interception by the Prosecutor's Office, which was investigating Ismailaj since 2008, revealed a telephone communication through SMS, which, according to the document published by journalist Artan Hoxha, raised doubts about money relations between Mr. Meta and Ismailaj.

An article published at the same time by BIRN cited the documents of the law firm that defended the interests of the Albanian state in the arbitration with DIA, according to which "a part of the money that had circulated between CEZ and DIA, had went to pay Albanian politicians, including a former prime minister previously accused of corruption and a former ERE official". The writing identified Mr. Meta as the politician described in the documents. But then the law firm itself specified that the name of Mr. Meta was not mentioned in any case.

In October 2015, while the Democratic Party persistently demanded his resignation as speaker of the parliament, Mr. Meta publicly denied having asked for favors from Ismailaj. "Kastriot Ismailaj has not asked me for any favors and I have not done him any favors. This should be very clear to you and to anyone else", declared Mr. Meta on October 1, 2015, addressing the opposition.

Even today, on his way out after 3 hours at the Special Prosecutor's Office, Mr. Meta said that he had nothing to do with either the CEZ case or the Czech company's agreement with the DIA: "Ilir Meta has nothing to do with the process of privatization of CEZ, because he was in opposition at that time. Ilir Meta, it has nothing to do with the CEZ-DIA agreement, because this was an issue, not only of CEZ, but this agreement was made at a time when Ilir Meta was not Minister of Economy and had no relationship with CEZ either and no one else".

It is not known what new elements the Special Prosecutor's Office has regarding this already tried case, for which in 2017 Ismailaj was sentenced to 11 years in prison. But according to Mr. Meta, it has a clear political background and impetus from the government. "You know who gave the instructions to summon Ilir Meta to SPAK. They are given by the party congress, but I do not prevent anyone from receiving instructions from the party. But I am the one that the Albanian citizens have known and always know, open and transparent. We can't wait for those lazy companies, who continue and now steal millions of euros from the incinerator, at the Sharra Landfill, to have acts and concrete actions", he said.

Mr. Meta stated that time is being wasted with a closed case, while according to him, the files with the corruption denunciations of the current governors have become a mountain in the Special Prosecutor's Office./ VOA


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