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| Sali Berisha speaking to the media after the removal of immunity with 75 votes |
Sali Berisha will face justice without parliamentary immunity. In less than 8 minutes, without any surprises, with the votes of the majority, the Parliament approved the lifting of the former prime minister's immunity, paving the way for his arrest on charges of passive corruption.
As predicted by the rules, the Speaker of the Parliament, Lindita Nikolla, gave the floor to Sali Berisha, but he refused. He requested the removal of the Republic's guard from the Speaker's rostrum, but such a request was not considered, and as a result, the former prime minister chose to remain silent.
Neither protests outside the parliament nor chaos in the plenary session, a scenario seen before from the opposition, with overturned chairs in the Speaker's rostrum and blue smoke, did not stop the majority from using the power of the ballot to strip the opposition leader of his immunity. What was noticed was the absence of Lulzim Basha and his supporting deputies.
Now, after this decision by the Parliament, SPAK (Special Anti-Corruption and Organized Crime Structure) has a clear path to submit a request to the Corruption and Organized Crime Court for the type of security measure, whether it will be house arrest or imprisonment.
Berisha is accused of specific actions, as the prime minister, involving the approval of laws and sub-legal acts, from which his son-in-law, Jamarber Malltezi, benefited through the privatization of state property, the Partizani sports complex. Throughout his rhetoric, the former prime minister has denied the accusations, labeling them as political.