Albulena Haxhiu, the Vetevendosje (LVV) candidate for Speaker of the Assembly of Kosovo, has accused the main opposition parties of deliberately blocking the constitution of the new Parliament, describing their actions as a political mistake that undermines the country’s institutions.
“It was not the right decision by Members of Parliament not to constitute the Assembly. Their decision to attend the session but not participate in the vote was wrong. I have said before that there are many issues over which we can fight our battles — but making a battle out of whether the Assembly should be constituted or not is politically misguided,” Haxhiu said in an interview with RTV Dukagjini.
Haxhiu specifically named the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK), the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK), and the Serb List, claiming they initiated the blockade.
“The opposition — PDK, LDK, AAK, and the Serb List — blocked the vote. It was unprecedented when, in two sessions, they refused to vote on their own mandates and did not approve the report. We expected them to reflect,” she said.
When asked if she ever suggested to Prime Minister Albin Kurti that her name be withdrawn as a candidate for Speaker, Haxhiu dismissed the idea:
“I was never the problem — this has nothing to do with me personally. The problem is the clash of worldviews: PDK, LDK, and AAK want to push Kosovo back to before 2021, while LVV is determined to continue good governance with its partners,” she said.
Haxhiu was also asked whether the ruling party had counted on votes from the Serb List during the secret ballot. She claimed there was no communication with the Serb List but believed there was support within the PDK and LDK:
“We had no communication with them. I had votes within PDK-LDK. We have shown through our actions that we are against the Serb List — which, for me, is not a political entity at all,” she stressed.
Meanwhile, the Constitutional Court of Kosovo has imposed an ex officio interim measure regarding the constitution of the Assembly, following motions submitted by the PDK and LDK.
Under its July 24 ruling, if the Assembly failed to be constituted by the Court’s deadline of July 26, MPs are prohibited from taking any further actions or decisions regarding constitution between July 27 and August 8.
The MPs of the ninth legislature last met on Saturday, July 26, the final day of the deadline. The session convened at 2:00 PM and again at 10:00 PM. On both occasions, the presiding officer, Avni Dehari, put forward the proposal to form a committee for a secret ballot, but the proposal failed both times. Consequently, the Assembly suspended its constitutive session to respect the Constitutional Court’s interim measure and now awaits further rulings.
