Kusari-Lila: First elect the president, then proceed with the law on the Specialist Chambers

Mimoza Kusari-Lila, leader of Alternativa — the party that is part of the winning Vetëvendosje coalition — is appealing to parties to first agree on a consensual name for president, and only then proceed with amending the law on the Specialist Chambers.

The Minister of Industry, Entrepreneurship and Trade insists this must happen before October 6, so that new elections are avoided.

“That is, we must bear in mind that in this haste and in this interconnected system of deadlines that appear naturally interconnected, it is very important that we have one thing in common. And the common denominator must be to avoid elections. How are elections avoided? The country must have a president by October 6. For the country to have a president by October 6, the first and most important thing is for the parties to have a consensus on a consensual candidate, and then all together in careful, important joint work on the law on the Specialist Chambers, in supporting the defense teams for the appeal,” she said.

She said the case of the KLA leaders must be submitted as soon as possible, as the deadlines are very short.

“Let us not forget, the deadline to appeal the terrible verdict of the Hague Specialist Chambers is 30 days after its presentation or publication — in fact it has not yet been published in full, only the announcement of the verdict. And the 30 days against October 6, set by the Constitutional Court — the 30 days for submitting the appeal is October 16, after which there are another 60 days to complete the presented case in full, which falls after December 10,” Kusari-Lila said.

Regarding party meetings on the president, the minister stressed that there is willingness to reach a consensus, as the only way to elect the head of state before October 6.

“The will has been, is and will be there in the future; except that, besides meetings, there is no other solution but joint decisions. That is, there is no other possibility of reaching agreement except in joint meetings among political leaders. And that is why this time period is very important. If nothing else, by the 6th there must be agreement on the president, agreement on decisions and next steps for approving the draft law, and of course coordination for assisting the defense teams in The Hague,” she emphasized, as KosovaPress reports.