No agreement on the president, Koci warns of an unprecedented situation

On Tuesday, 6 October, the constitutional deadline for electing the President of the Republic of Kosovo expires, while so far there are no signals of an agreement between the political parties.

Political affairs expert Melazim Koci has warned that Kosovo may face a new and unprecedented constitutional situation if by 6 October the president of the Republic is not elected.

In a statement for Telegrafi, Koci said that the Constitutional Court has set 6 October as the last day for completing the process of electing the president, while so far, according to him, there are no indications of the crisis being overcome.

“The Constitutional Court has set 6 October as the last day for the election of the President of the Republic of Kosovo. Up to this moment there is no indication that speaks of overcoming this crisis,” Koci declared.

He assessed that the chances of reaching an agreement on the Law on the Specialist Chambers and the election of the president are minimal.

“The chances of an agreement on the Law on the Specialist Chambers and the President are minimal. It can even be said that there is no political will for Kosovo to get a president either,” he said.

According to Koci, if the president is not elected by 6 October, the Assembly is dissolved automatically and elections must be held within 45 days.

“After 6 October, the Assembly is dissolved automatically and elections must be held within 45 days,” Koci declared.

He also raised dilemmas regarding the procedures that would follow, particularly for the consultations with the political parties and the setting of the election date.

“This deadline, or Tuesday midnight, opens a new dilemma: who will deal with the technicalities, the consultations with the political parties and the announcement of the election date?” he said.

According to him, this issue is not clearly regulated by the Constitution, and he does not rule out the possibility that the acting president, Albulena Haxhiu, will turn to the Constitutional Court.

“This issue is not regulated clearly by the Constitution and it would not surprise me if Haxhiu turns to the Constitutional Court,” Koci declared.

Koci warned that, regardless of the scenario that may unfold after 6 October, the country may enter an unknown constitutional situation.

“In all variants, Kosovo will from 6 October enter an unknown and unprecedented constitutional situation,” Koci said.

Finally, he called for the constitutional deadlines to be respected, warning of the possible consequences of exceeding them.

“‘Playing’ with deadlines or, even worse, ignoring them could lead Kosovo towards constitutional chaos,” Koci concluded.

Otherwise, on Saturday, the chairman of Vetëvendosje, Albin Kurti, held separate meetings with the chairman of PDK, Bedri Hamza, and the chairman of LDK, Lumir Abdixhiku.

The meetings took place as part of the efforts to find a solution for the election of the president.

Besides the issue of the president, the PDK’s demand for the amendment of the Law on the Specialist Chambers has also been included in the political discussions.

The PDK is demanding that the Draft Law amending this law be approved in the Assembly in both readings by 6 October, as Telegrafi reports.