A strong clash has erupted in the Municipality of Tirana between the appointed Mayor Anuela Ristani and the Secretary General reinstated by court decision, Alban Dokushi.
Dokushi was dismissed from his post after the arrest of Erion Veliaj. He then appealed to the court, which ruled to reinstate him as Secretary General. In compliance with this decision, Erion Veliaj signed the order reinstating Dokushi.
But Anuela Ristani refused to carry out this order. Instead of returning to her previous position, she appointed Dokushi as director of a department.
In response to this action, Alban Dokushi filed a criminal complaint against Ristan for abuse of office and obstruction of the execution of a court decision.
The clash is now expected to reach the doors of the Prosecutor's Office.
The conflict between Ristan and Dokushi seems to be much more than an administrative dispute. It exposes the battle for control of the Tirana Municipality following the arrest of Erion Veliaj.
When Edi Rama appointed Anuela Ristan to the temporary leadership of the Municipality, the political message was clear: the institution needed to have a functional leader during the mayor's absence. On the other hand, Erion Veliaj, even though he is in detention, signed the reinstatement of one of his closest associates, Alban Dokushi, to the post of General Secretary, the most important administrative function in the municipality.
Ristan's refusal to reinstate Dokushi to this post can be read as a signal that control of the Municipality will not be exercised by Veliaj's people, but by the structure that currently runs the institution.
Whether this is a clash between two interpretations of legal powers or a political battle for power within the Municipality of Tirana remains to be seen. But one thing is clear: the arrest of Erion Veliaj has not ended the fight for control of the Municipality. On the contrary, it seems to have just entered its most open phase./ vna.al