The Minister of the Interior, Taulant Balla, has stressed that the fight against organised crime and the improvement of public security are the main priorities of the work of the Ministry and its subordinate structures. Minister Balla made these statements at the plenary session of the Assembly, where a resolution on the fight against corruption is being discussed.

“The fight against organised crime and the improvement of public security are our main priorities today. It is a vital necessity for the country, for the future, to deepen the fight against corruption, organised crime and, above all, the phenomenon of impunity, in a capillary way, at all levels, placing it at the centre of Albanian society and all state institutions, in which the State Police obviously plays an important role”, said Minister Balla in his speech.
He pointed out that the country has already entered an intense phase that separates us from the past, when various people evaded justice or were acquitted by the court.
“Today we are at an important moment in the fight against corruption and organised crime, and the results achieved so far are only the beginning of a return to the rule of law, to the era of impunity. I believe there are some of you here who share our view that there can be no untouchable politicians on the territory of this Republic, nor on the chairs of this hall, nor strong neighbourhoods above the law and the citizens. Never forget that the day is not far off when both races will escape justice. “Worse still, the police stopped them, the prosecution brought charges, but the court took them out the back door after they paid, like in a market,” the minister stressed.
Speaking about the progress made by our country in the fight against crime, he added that in 2023 Albania had the most visible improvement compared to all countries in the region and beyond.
“The year 2023 marked the lowest number of criminal murders: 35 compared to 107 in 2013 and 124 in 2012. 28 of these cases were detected. The Global Initiative Against Corruption and also the Global Initiative Against International Organised Crime, in the report published for 2023, pointed out that Albania has made the greatest progress compared to all the countries of the Western Balkans, reducing the level of criminality. With 0.46 points, compared to other countries of the Western Balkans and ultimately removing Albania from the first 10 countries with the highest level of organised crime and with a significant improvement compared to other countries of the Western Balkans,” Minister Balla declared in this plenary session.
The Minister also stopped at the process of self-purification of the State Police structures, which he considers irreversible.
“The increase in the performance of the State Police is inseparable from the process of self-purification, which has already entered a new phase, in order to eradicate once and for all from the healthy body of the State Police the harmful elements, incriminated or offenders of ethics, which tarnish the hard work of thousands and thousands of blue uniforms, who serve with unwavering determination the rule of law and the defence of the citizens of this country”, the Minister stressed in his speech.

In his speech, the minister made an ironic reference to the attitude of some opposition MPs who have been using the image of a politician who was declared “non grata” by the US and the UK for corruption as a battle flag.
“Some of the opposition MPs are waving an ugly photo of a person declared non grata by the US and the UK with the content “corrupt acts that have undermined democracy”, adding here the fact that the same person in the photo is today under official accusation of corruption by the judiciary, therefore I want to tell the Albanian citizens today that the results achieved so far are only the beginning of a rematch of the rule of law. It is imperative that we deepen this rematch that has begun, naturally by sharing with each other the awareness that this serves as an additional and inalienable value of the membership process towards the European Union,” Balla underlined.

Following is the full speech of Minister Balla in Parliament:

The common commitment to anti-corruption reforms and the rule of law, while the Prime Minister of the country speaks about the resolution, some of the opposition MPs wave an ugly photo of a person declared non grata by the US and the World Bank with the content of the corrupt acts they have undermined democracy, adding here the fact that the same person in the photo is today officially accused of corruption by the judiciary. Therefore, today I would like to say to the Albanian citizens that we are at an important moment in the fight against corruption and organised crime, and that the results achieved so far are only the beginning of a return to the rule of law, to the era of impunity with which some of you are still here. It is imperative that we deepen this natural rematch that has begun, by sharing with each other the awareness that this once serves as an added and inalienable value of the membership process towards the European Union. And here I believe that there are some of you who share our assessment that on the territory of this Republic, as in the chairs of this hall, there can be neither untouchable nor strong politicians, above the law and above the citizens. Don’t ever forget that the day was not far away when the eyes of both races escaped justice, worse still, the police stopped them, the prosecution filed charges, but the court took them out the back door after paying, as in a market. It is a vital necessity for the country, for the future, to deepen the fight against corruption, organised crime and, above all, the phenomenon of impunity, in a capillary way, at all levels, putting it in the centre, in the centre of Albanian society and of all state institutions, where the state police obviously plays an important role.

Fighting organised crime and improving public safety are our top priorities today.

Complex investigations by the Special Prosecutor’s Office and the District Prosecutor’s Offices are dismantling groups involved in serious crimes such as murder, drug trafficking, smuggling, money laundering, and so on.
The year 2023 marked the lowest number of criminal murders: 35 compared to 107 in 2013 and 124 in 2012. 28 of these incidents were detected.

The Global Initiative Against Corruption and also the Global Initiative Against International Organised Crime, in the report published for 2023, pointed out that Albania has made the greatest progress compared to all the countries of the Western Balkans, reducing the level of criminality by 0.46 points, compared to other countries of the Western Balkans, and ultimately removing Albania from the top 10 countries with the highest level of organised crime, with a significant improvement compared to other countries of the Western Balkans.

We are aware that the fight against impunity must continue within the structure of the State Police, through its own cleansing process, and we know very well that this process depends closely on cooperation and mutual trust with the Special Prosecutor’s Office, with the General Prosecutor’s Office and, of course, with the judicial system.

Colleagues, I would like to share with you, because the duties of the Ministry of the Interior are not only those related to the State Police and those related to the interaction with other institutions, including international law enforcement agencies. I would also like to say a few words about the part related to the reform of the institutions and here I am giving a figure that is very significant, a figure that comes from the General Directorate of Civil Status. In just two years, from May 2022 until now, there are a full 11.5 million electronic certificates issued to citizens, saving millions and even more than that, time for every citizen to benefit from these services and also to tell you that 80% of these services are online. This innovation has enabled every Albanian citizen to receive online services without having to contact civil service officials and saving money on transportation, saving time and everything else.

We are in an important process of digital transformation, in which the state company IdentiTek is very fast. We will come to the Assembly for legal changes and very soon we will have the opportunity for Albanian citizens to have a digital identity, just like some of the most advanced European countries. This will include the platform e-wallet, the collection of all digital documents, so that every Albanian citizen will have all their documents in a digital wallet, without having to carry them physically, but all in their mobile phone.

And finally, that every time I have the opportunity to communicate it here in the Assembly, the important SMART CITY project for the 20 main cities of the country, mainly the big cities and those that focus on tourism development. We are working closely with the government of EBA, whom I have the opportunity to thank for financing this big project, which will give us the opportunity not only to increase public security, not only to improve the monitoring of the territory. It will also to raise it to another level the role of the State Police in interaction with institutions, with other law enforcement agencies. It is important to continue to maintain the already international certification of Albania as a country with impressive public security, adding here also the rest of the Albanian passport related to tourism, without forgetting the fact that this year we will break our historical record of last year, where we expect to have 30-40% more visitors in Albania than last year.

In the hope that by the end of this discussion you will be able to escape the order that you have received from the unfortunately waving picture, I hope that by five o’clock you will come to your senses and vote on the resolution.