The Albanian opposition will be killed by conspiracism, nothing else. It will not be killed by losing the elections, nor will it be killed by the lack of internal democracy. Both frequent losses and the lack of internal democracy are things that a party can overcome and, after possible, long and difficult reflections, manage to change and win.
What never allows a party or an organization to reflect, to see itself, to change, is conspiracism: explaining the world and itself, explaining one's own situation and political developments, building a strategy of survival and victory through conspiracy.
Two days ago it was announced that Prime Minister Rama of Albania has received an invitation from US President Donald Trump to be a member of the Gaza Peace Board. As is known, a short while ago, after difficult negotiations (and after three years of violence and genocide in Gaza), an agreement was reached between the US, Israel, Hamas and the leaders of several countries: Egypt, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, etc., for peace with several phases. After the first phase, which is now considered complete, which had to do with stopping the fighting and resolving the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, the second phase would begin, that of rebuilding Gaza, disarming Hamas, etc. In the second phase, a Board would be established that would be led by President Trump. More or less this has happened, without going into great details of the peace plan and its functioning.
President Trump announced the Peace Board, where there are or will be about 100 countries, each with its own representative. Within this giant political board, led by the US and Trump, an executive board will be established that will direct the entire process on the ground. This executive board has several well-known names from the world of politics and economics and diplomacy, starting with US Secretary Rubio.
After the news broke that Prime Minister Rama had received an invitation to be a member of the Peace Board, there was a huge convulsion in the opposition ranks, who could not accept this because of the conspiratorial narrative built up until now. The invitation for Rama and Albania is a very good thing and, God willing, it will be used for good. It shows that our country is (this is known) an ally of the US and our government is also a partner of the US government.
The opposition has so far said and still says (it will probably continue to do so indefinitely) that the Democratic administration of President Biden, that of President Obama as well (but especially Biden), was under the control of George Soros. Prime Minister Rama was and is, the opposition says, a tool of George Soros. George Soros, in order to clear the way for Rama, lobbied through his means and people to Secretary Blinken and the entire Biden administration (which he controls) to declare Sali Berisha non grata, who was the only obstacle in Albania to the plans of Soros and his tool Rama, after Lulzim Basha had fallen under their control and had sold out the opposition. To pave the way for Rama and to destroy the PD and the opposition (Berisha), SPAK was created, led by Rama and the Soros clan, and everything else was done.
The opposition has said and says that Trump will destroy this conspiracy as soon as he comes to power. The opposition has said that Trump and his administration, Vice President JD Vance, Secretary Rubio, Attorney General Bondi, Deputy Secretary Landau, Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Deputy Chief Stephen Miller, etc., will destroy the Soros regimes everywhere and, most importantly, Rama. For this, they have blocked him, isolated him, and he will have the fate of Maduro. Maybe they will not take him by helicopter, but they will destroy him with SPAK, which is no longer controlled by Soros, but by the Trump administration.
The opposition has been continuing with this conspiratorial explanation since 2021. It has been continuing with conspiratorial explanations for decades, explanations that it has been deepening, entering an ever deeper crisis itself.
Of course, in politics, even in America, there are lobbies, there are factors that influence, there are actors that play a role, but they never go beyond the legalities, conspiratorialism never exceeds the logic of things and the principles of their functioning.
After the news broke, the opposition, shocked that Rama had received an invitation from the US, began to say that it was a useless invitation, that 100 others had received it, that it had no value, that it did not show that Rama had emerged from the isolation and terrible fate of American punishment. Rama may be bad with internationals, and it is bad because he has destroyed governance and the law in Albania; Rama may have terrible political luck and will certainly go down very badly as a man who failed miserably with governance and corruption, but these have nothing to do with conspiratorialism.
The opposition has chosen conspiracism as an instrument of power or political survival. Theoretically, this happens when political actors lose support, moral authority and credibility. Then the conspiracy serves as a defense mechanism. Instead of accepting failure, responsibility is shifted to “hidden forces”, “external actors”, “invisible networks”. This maintains the narrative that the defeat is not real, but imposed, says Richard Hofstadter in the famous book “The Paranoid Style in American Politics”. Conspiracy also simplifies reality by making it one-dimensional.
Political processes are complex; many kinds of variables come into play from political sociology, economics, institutions, the justice and sincerity of leaders, multiple interests. Conspiracy theories reduce this complexity to a single cause, usually an identifiable enemy. This makes political reality emotionally more manageable for the militant base. Conspiracy, on the other hand, creates fear, anger, and a sense of siege. These emotions are much more mobilizing than rational arguments. Conspiracy politics produces a strong “us versus them” division, strengthening group identity and loyalty to the leader. These things massacre an organization, a party, or even a government. These may help certain people for small things, but not the organization or movement. Today, the opposition needs to be a popular movement to overthrow one of the most corrupt governments in 35 years of history, and not hope that the US (conspiracy theory, that is) will remove Rama from power.
