The deputy of the Democratic Party, Gazment Bardhi, is convinced that after the decision of the Administrative Court of Appeal, the legal deadlock within the political force has been resolved, despite the appeal to the Supreme Court by Sali Berisha's group.
In an interview for "Panorama TV", Bardhi calls for a common candidate for the May 14 local elections. While after May 14, continues Bardhi, elections must be held in DP for all its structures.
According to Bardhi, the elections within the DP could have been held even earlier, even the democratic deputy said that he proposed this twice to Sali Berisha, but it was not accepted by the latter.
Ada Hazizolli : Will elections be held after May 14 and will Berisha and Basha be allowed to run?
Gazment Bardhi : Definitely. First, who will run, is a decision that is not decided by me, but by the party structures at the moment when they determine the candidacy criteria. Public opinion will be known in due course. Undoubtedly, after the local elections, it could certainly have happened during this period as well, but responsibly the Presidency has decided not to split the party definitively, but to have the opportunity to organize a joint process.
We made this offer to Berisha twice before, before the first-instance decision came out, and even after the first-instance decision came out. We reached out to him to build a joint party reorganization process that went from the base to the top of the party, which is the chairman. Not accepted. Now that the legal impasse has been created, it is obviously necessary to go to an election process from the grassroots to the chairman.
Ada Hazisolli : It seems that the legal battle will continue. Berisha's group has warned that the case will be pursued up to the Supreme Court but also to the Strasbourg court. Does this situation risk breaking the trust of the membership?
Gazment Bardhi : Anyone who disagrees with a court decision is free to follow the institutional path. It is important to accept the decisions of the court. He is then at liberty to follow any path. What I judge is that this issue is resolved. It should have been resolved in the first instance if the law had been respected. Unfortunately, the law was not respected. The appeal was followed, now I consider the legal impasse within the DP to be closed. Berisha and anyone is free to follow the legal path he deems necessary for the protection of his political interest. I would really like for us to have the maturity to solve this problem among ourselves. But when we do not find a common language for local elections, imagine how difficult it would be to find a political solution within ourselves.