Ilir Alimehmeti has openly expressed his willingness to represent the opposition in the race for Tirana Municipality, stressing that the final candidate must be the result of an agreement and consensus among opposition forces. During a live interview on the central news edition of Vizion Plus, Alimehmeti appealed to opposition parties to set aside their divisions and unite their positions to field a single candidate. For a race with divided candidates would favor the political opponent, while the opposition should focus on a common alternative. Alimehmeti stressed that the citizens’ interest must prevail over personal ambitions, and that the way the candidate is chosen is far more important than the name that will represent the opposition in this race.
Do you today consider yourself a candidate, or merely a person who has expressed willingness to run?
Ilir Alimehmeti: I have placed myself at the disposal of the opposition. Because I believe this is how the job should be done. It must be done with a consensus among the forces, which I genuinely think is in the public interest: bringing down Rama’s government as soon as possible, and these forces must coordinate with one another. Because, to be very clear, we know very well whether there will be no changes to the territorial law, as you know a request has already been made to introduce two-round elections, meaning the runoff system. So if this does not pass, and Edi Rama is not interested in this, since they know they would lose the elections that way, then coordination is required for a single round, and it requires coordination from the very beginning across the entire opposition. So I think and hope that all the opposition factors sit down with one another, find consensus for all municipalities if possible, but especially for Tirana, which is the largest and most heterogeneous, and where all the forces are present, and that they settle on a single candidate. If more than one candidate is put forward, it means we are playing the opponent’s game.
Mr. Alimehmeti, do you have a project for how you would run Tirana if you were elected, or are you part of the opposition’s political battle to topple the government, in which the battle for Tirana obviously remains the main one?
Ilir Alimehmeti: This is not a discussion that arises today, and I am, of course, the chairman of the group of right-wing councillors in Tirana Municipality. So we are constantly involved in, let’s say, following developments as they unfold in Tirana Municipality, which has been blocked just as it has been blocked and abused just as it has been abused. We are very clear about all the problems, and we are very clear about what is being done and what cannot be done. So in this respect, first and foremost there must be this consensus of the opposition forces, to carry forward the spirit, to carry forward the great change. And I tell you with full conviction that if these forces manage to achieve it, which is very difficult, as you know the conditions in Albania, this consensus is very hard, these forces will enter and make a historic step. It will be remembered as a consensus in the name of the public interest.
Yesterday the general secretary of the Democratic Party praised your candidacy very highly, but of course you are not yet an official candidate. What is your relationship with the Democratic Party, or with the opposition in general, officially, regarding your desire and your readiness to run for mayor?
Ilir Alimehmeti: First, the process of how it will be done must be looked at. If you remember, a year ago we had a process in which all the forces communicated with one another about Tirana. I believe you remember this, that a round of meetings ended with a conclusion, and the candidate was supported by all the forces. I know because I was in the negotiating group, so I know it from many people involved in this conversation. It was a process that I think was very constructive, and I hope that this kind of process is repeated. Whether it will be done or not, we will be here, we will follow the dynamics, but the process is more important than any individual name, because it guarantees a horizon, a vision and a common denominator. Therefore the process is more important than the individual.
If the Democratic Party, for its own reasons, does not put forward your name as the candidate but another name, will you continue the race individually?
Ilir Alimehmeti: The public interest is above personal interest, and as long as we are talking about the public interest, I will choose the public interest wherever it may be: in politics, outside politics, in healthcare, outside healthcare, and in all forms. The public is the priority. So if these forces come together and choose a consensus candidate, the job is done and Tirana is returned. If they cannot achieve this, then the path to taking Tirana becomes almost impossible. All the forces know this, and I hope they have the clarity and the clean conscience toward the citizen in this respect.