Presentation of the New Head of the National Agency for Information Society, Igli Tafa

Prime Minister Rama today presented the new Director of the National Agency for Information Society (AKSHI), Igli Tafa, at an extended meeting, together with the Minister of Economy and Innovation, Delina Ibrahimaj, and with the participation of AKSHI staff, talented young women and men who, under the leadership of former Director Linda Karçanaj, have brought to life the digital revolution that has made Albania a leader in the region and a positive example in every international ranking or report on digital governance.

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Prime Minister Edi Rama:

Good afternoon. Thank you for this moment that we share together.

I decided to come here personally to present the new Director, whom you already know, but first and foremost I wished to come myself to extend a very great thank you to Linda Karçanaj, who has worked alongside me for more than two decades, since our time at the Municipality of Tirana. I know her as one of the most dedicated individuals to public function and public service in this country. You know her personally yourselves and I believe you share my view that Linda has always been the first to arrive at work and the last to leave.

I am saddened by everything she is going through, first and foremost by the barbaric aggression of online portals and networks of verbal violence that associate her with matters that bear no relation whatsoever to her.

Naturally, as always, I do not enter the merits of the case in question. I have no knowledge of the details related to the activities of the companies involved in an investigation. But I do know that Linda is a single mother of two children and that she has one of the most distinguished careers in public service.

I am aware that with all partners, and you know better than I do that AKSHI works with high-level partners, the giants of technology: Microsoft, Oracle and others, I have heard the most enthusiastic words and the most extraordinary impressions about you, your staff and Linda Karçanaj.

I say all this out of respect for a person who today is undergoing an ordeal, from which I sincerely hope she will emerge clean. In any case, it is not for me to say so; it is for justice to determine. But that does not mean that the values she has created should be cast aside, nor that the revolution she led together with all of you should be dismissed.

This team is one of the most important assets of the Republic of Albania. I am sorry for those among you who have been placed under pressure; I am sorry for those who have been mistreated, abused and confronted with methods of coercion unjustifiable in a democratic republic. But at the same time, I wish to tell you that we are living through a phase of our history in which another revolution is taking place, like the revolution you have made and continue to make every day to transform Albania into a reflection of the new digital world and to place that digital world at the service of people, enterprises and development.

Yet there is also another revolution, harsher, more painful, with more wounds and more brutality, but necessary: the revolution of transforming the justice system from a living decay into a fair, equal and functional system of justice. We are still far from that latter goal, but the road is irreversible.

Unfortunately, whereas in your virtual world experiments are conducted with algorithms and failures are glitches or a computer being switched off, in this revolution of justice these experiments occur on the skin of human beings. It is not a computer that is shut down; it is a person’s life that is placed in an unenviable position when that person is innocent.

At this stage of the revolution, it is not the presumption of innocence that guides the conduct of those who must transform this system into a just and democratic one, but rather the presumption of guilt. That is a dramatic element of this process.

If there is an investigation concerning AKSHI, in a just world everyone would be presumed innocent. Instead, everyone is presumed guilty and required to prove themselves. This is a difficult moment.

Some of you here are people who live with the computer screen and might even forget to eat for days. When confronted with the brutality of real life, you may quite understandably feel disoriented and destabilized in your work processes. But I wish to tell you one thing: in the end, the truth prevails. There is a cost, certainly. In these conditions the cost may be high, but the truth does prevail.

For us it is extremely important that this institution continues its work, that it continues to be the lighthouse guiding all ships and indicating where the port lies in relation to the digital revolution. I wish to encourage you in this regard.

Together with the Minister, we have decided to intervene in the legislation and introduce a significant increase in your salaries, to tell you that you are highly valued. We do not wish you to abandon public service. We do not wish you to place your talent at the disposal of the private sector. We want you to believe that this is your place, your home, and that from this home you serve so many people, simplify the lives of so many people, and provide services at an unimaginable speed only a few years ago.

This is a moment for solidarity, for separating clearly the matter that justice will address, and for hoping together that justice will be truly just.

AKSHI once had a name that meant little to anyone, a handful of insignificant services and a few thousand users. Today AKSHI serves all Albanians, in Albania and across the world, through e-Albania.

It is a great misfortune for AKSHI’s name to be tarnished. Yet we cannot claim that because of this transformation and the burden you carry, AKSHI is beyond investigation. That cannot be claimed. Just as your success requires time, so too will the transformation of justice require time.

Yesterday we held a Zoom meeting with Nvidia. Nvidia is ready to become a partner for Diella. Diella is a product of Enion, Linda and others here who work with them. It is extraordinary that a group of young people here in Albania have created something spoken about worldwide. Soon Nvidia’s team will come here to elevate Diella to another level. This is possible because you made it possible.

If for a moment the lights of this house were switched off, Albania would return to the stone age in terms of public services. You have built over 1,000 online public services and eliminated queues.

There are new challenges ahead. You will address them with our full support. Artificial intelligence in public procurement will transform the entire approach of the state administration and become a model for others. We will work with Nvidia and Microsoft. Our alliance with Microsoft is extraordinary. Their admiration for you is extraordinary.

You must not give up. You must remain united and understand that what does not kill you makes you stronger.

AKSHI must become a place where everyone working in high technology dreams of coming to work. We will ensure that AKSHI has the highest salaries in Albania, so that no private enterprise can compete. That is our objective.

I am convinced that Igli Tafa will lead alongside you, not merely as a manager but as one who understands your language and your challenges. He has taken on this role as a duty, not as a celebration.

You are one of the most irreplaceable stones in the mosaic of the Albanian state. You should feel pride, but also responsibility beyond the individual. This is perhaps the most specialized unit of the Republic of Albania, together with the cyber defense unit.

Your duty now is to stand united and focus on the major projects ahead. Our duty is to ensure higher salaries and the proper framework to protect and retain the best talent.

Those were my words. I now pass the floor to the new Director.