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Even the horoscope is more inspiring than the narratives of the political opposition

2026-08-14 09:19:03Pikëpamje SHKRUAR NGA YLLI MANJANI
Star Manjani

Even the horoscope is more inspiring than the narratives of the political opposition.

I cannot find any truly successful political narrative of the opposition parties during the entire time that Edi Rama has been governing. I say this not without pain, because for a long time I have wanted to find myself, for as much public investment as I have made, in a serious political alternative. I have not sought and do not seek a career in politics, but being on a front with people who are seriously thinking about a political alternative is a good feeling.

Unfortunately, I never had this feeling.

The question that arises for me is simple: why has no political narrative constructed by the opposition since 2017 taken off?

In a simple, even purely empirical, analysis, the answer seems relatively clear. The narratives have been shallow, without substance, and built on the jokes of the day. Jokes that may produce applause for an evening, but not political conviction for a decade.

Overall, these jokes-narratives have not held up, because reality has dealt them a hard, even very hard, slap.

Undoubtedly, the main goal has been and remains the acceleration of Albania's accession process to the European Union.

This has hit hard and very hard not only the jokes-narratives of the "narcostate", "Ramaduro", "Ramaforma" and others of this type, but has hit at the foundation a significant part of the narrative of the political opposition. So much so that today the opposition is faced with an existential dilemma: "To be or not to be".

The problem is that the opposition's narratives have been largely reactionary and denunciatory, not inspiring for the future.

The opposition has emerged, above all, from the model of the political and public whistleblower. The whistleblower who denounces, reports, accuses, and expects the opponent to be overthrown through a criminal process.

But here arises the greatest irony.

Political whistleblowers have carried out their mission precisely in front of a justice system that, in the other narrative of the same opposition, is accused of being controlled by political enemy Edi Rama.

So, within the same day, the same justice can be both an instrument seized by Rama and the fair arbitrator who must punish his opponents.

This does not produce credibility. It produces fatigue. And ironically, the horoscope inspires more.

Because at least the horoscope tells you what to expect tomorrow. The opposition only tells you what not to like today.

Last, but not least, the opposition's critical narrative has been and remains focused on the person Edi Rama, not on the politician Edi Rama.

This is probably one of the biggest mistakes.

To attack Rama, the opposition has often used models of political behavior that she herself practiced when she was in government.

"Rama the bandit." But when his political record does not include a single person killed or missing without a trace, the label becomes unbelievable.

"Rama is a media abuser."

But when you're not faced with a reality where newspaper offices are burned down by SHIK or the police, even this narrative loses its power.

The problem is not just that these accusations are exaggerated. The problem is that they do not explain Rama.

And herein lies the opposition's biggest flaw: the constant refusal to recognize Rama as a political opponent.

It's easier to call him a "bandit," a "criminal," a "drug dealer," or a "Ramaduro" than to sit down and understand where his political strength lies, where he gives in, what makes him successful, and, above all, how he can be defeated politically.

Because you can't beat an opponent you don't know.

You can only slander him. And a narrative that exists only to smear the opponent, in the end only smears itself.

It's not simple, of course.

Rama is perhaps the most utilitarian politician in the Albanian political space. He has few or none of those traditional moral barriers that usually stand in the way of a politician. This has been one of the sources of his success.

He has not had to contend with anything that traditional politics considers unacceptable.

He had no problem cooperating with people he considered opponents the day before. He had no problem even coming out of a political situation "naked" if it served his next objective.

In Rama's politics, the means do not necessarily have color.
Neither the money nor the people who hold it.
Whoever has resources and is willing to use them for a project can be useful. But this does not mean that Rama automatically gives moral guarantees for the legitimacy of the source or its bearer.

This is political utilitarianism. And that, in itself, does not necessarily make you a "narcot".

It makes you an unscrupulous political utilitarian who doesn't need to kill or exterminate people to wield strong political power.

This is precisely the distinction that the opposition has failed to make.

Rama is not a proceduralist.
And for this reason, he is flawed in many state affairs, especially where bureaucracy, procedure, and administration require patience and institutional discipline.

But it is precisely this lack of proceduralism that has made him even more direct, more understandable and, for many people, more popular.
This does not necessarily make him a statesman.

It makes an effective politician.
And this is where the analysis of the opposition should begin.

Rama is not someone who is afraid of protests. In a way, he even enjoys them.

Even violent protest, when not accompanied by a credible political alternative, serves its purpose.

Because in the face of a protester who repeats the same political joke, the police may even disarm, while in the face of an opponent who has an idea, a project, and a potential social majority, the game would change completely.

That's why the opposition protest often seems more like a television performance than a political process. Even comedy shows have produced longer-lasting jokes than the political opposition.

The opposition doesn't lose because Rama is invincible. It loses because it still hasn't managed to explain why Rama won.

It is not enough to say that he is corrupt, but you have to explain why a part of society continues to vote for him. It is not enough to say that he is authoritarian. You have to explain why many people do not perceive him that way. It is not enough to say “drugs”. You have to build an alternative state that the citizen can imagine and desire.
It is not enough to denounce. You have to inspire.

It's not enough to tell the citizen what's bad.
You have to show them what will be good.

And above all, you must build an Albania that exists in the citizen's imagination before asking for their vote.

This is what is missing.

An opposition that recognizes its opponent, but does not copy them.
An opposition that criticizes the government, but does not build its identity solely on hatred of the government.

An opposition that doesn't need to call Rama a "bandit" every day, because it has a much stronger argument: "I can make this country better than he can."

Until then, unfortunately, even the horoscope will remain more inspiring than the narratives of the political opposition.


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