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Rama's paranoia - From Bushati, Nano, Veliaj, Mazi, Spiropali and Vengu, why does he remove and dismiss officials with international connections?!

2026-02-27 21:42:19Fokus SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX
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Prime Minister Edi Rama has shown in recent years that he has a red line, which he does not tolerate for anyone, even for people very close to him or even close associates. His "paranoia" is the internationals, where he has "worked" a lot in recent years, in attempts to fix his image or even that of the majority, given that he has disarmed the opposition in Albania over time, leaving some "bones" , or in formal confrontations in Parliament he pits young deputies against each other, led by Zegjine Çau?i.

The recent changes in the government, or even the departures of officials in recent years, have mostly had one theme; everyone who establishes close ties with the international factor is dismissed and replaced. He does not allow anyone to cross this red line, not even the midwife Elisa Spiropali, a very close person in the prime minister's circle, who had recently begun to "thrive " with internationals, with her visits to Europe or even with breakfasts across the Atlantic.

An example of subservience is undoubtedly the President of the Republic, Bajram Begaj, who even when he goes outside Albania, must get " permission" . It is enough to make a comparison between Begaj and Vjosa Osmani, to see that the President of Kosovo is quite active in diplomacy, in Europe or even in the USA, meeting and talking very closely with Donald Trump.

It seems that, in this "paranoia", Elisa Spiropali has been the prime minister's latest " sacrifice" , as she was seen very close to the Americans, who invited her to prayer mornings in Washington and Davos, in an attempt to stop the war in Ukraine. The " mommy" has even gone to Kosovo, not as an Albanian diplomat, but as a person on American orders. It is precisely this closeness that has greatly annoyed Rama, as he thought that with these connections, anyone could spy on him and lobby against him.

A " non grata" measure would be disastrous for the prime minister, or even several ministers and other trusted people, one of which was Belinda Balluku, whom he tried to protect from justice, the court and ultimately from the majority itself. The suspicions are that it was Belinda Balluku who may have " whispered" to Rama about these connections of Spiropali and others.

It seems that several officials have had the same fate, starting with her predecessor at the Foreign Ministry, Ditmir Bushati. Although a very capable diplomat, with deep roots in the Socialist Party, Bushati suddenly not only left the ministry, but was also “erased” from the party, as if he had never existed. Even then, Bushati crossed the Atlantic many times and made very close connections in Europe, to the point that he and his friends met diplomats in restaurants, bouzouki and bars, and not at diplomatic headquarters.

Another official who has left, but on the orders of the prime minister, was the former Director General of the State Police, Gledis Nano, a "man" who was sponsored by the headquarters on Elbasani Street. Nano was trained in the US and was seen as a man with close international connections, to the extent that he carried out several actions with the FBI or even the DEA against criminal organizations and human trafficking networks. Nano also attempted to become the head of the National Bureau of Investigation, similar to the FBI, which is attached to SPAK, but again there was no government lobbying for his name.

The same fate has also befallen the mayor of Tirana, Erion Veliaj, who is being investigated under the security measure of "prison arrest", while attempts to dismiss him have failed, following a decision by the Constitutional Court. During his time in office, Veliaj established connections in America and Europe, twinned with various cities, and brought mayors of the largest municipalities around the world to Tirana. But it seems that this did not please Rama or even the people close to him, who have attempted to create division, perhaps with the thought that the internationals will focus on some other name from the governing majority.

Another official removed from office was Fatmir Xhafa, former Interior Minister, who will be remembered more for having "spied" on several members of the government to internationals, for drug connections and everything else. Rama tried to throw him out the door, but Xhafaj slipped in through the window in the last elections, while he is currently an MP and heads a parliamentary committee.

Before him was diplomat Zef Mazi, a career diplomat, Albania's chief negotiator for integration, who left. The reason? Close ties with the international factor, frequent meetings with them! It seems that Rama does not accept anyone for his officials and ministers to have direct contact with. Even in his last speech, of more than 90 minutes, he emphasized that the only person with whom the internationals should talk is him! But, doesn't it resemble a small "dictatorship"?!

If he fired the aforementioned because they had established connections with officials in the EU and America, why did he fire Pirro Vengu? In November of last year, VoxNews published an article that Vengu was on the verge of being fired, due to strong clashes with Edi Rama.

At that time, sources from the Council of Ministers told the VoxNews editorial team that Rama had insisted on signing an arms contract, which would be won or, more precisely, taken to the "table" by some of the prime minister's partners, but Vengu refused. Rama's ultimatum was that if he did not sign this contract for the Israeli partners, he would be dismissed from office. Exactly what happened!

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This article is exclusive to Vox News, and is copyrighted under Law No. 35/2016, "On Copyright and Related Rights". The article may be republished by other media only by citing Vox News and including a link to the source at the end, otherwise any violator will be held liable under Article 178 of Law No. 35/2016.


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