Democratic Party MP, Jorida Tabaku, held a press conference before the start of the plenary session where the draft law on tourist ports as strategic investments is expected to be discussed, raising serious concerns about its compliance with European standards and the integration process.

In a strong political and institutional stance, Tabaku announced that she has addressed an official letter to the European Commission, EU competition authorities, the European Parliament, and the EU delegation in Tirana, informing them of the violations that, according to her, this legal initiative contains.

According to Tabaku, the changes to the law on tourist ports contradict the Stabilization and Association Agreement and directly affect several key chapters of European legislation, specifically chapters 5, 8 and 14. She emphasized that this is not an isolated case, but part of a repeated practice.

“The Law on Tourist Ports is another custom-made law, one of dozens of such laws that have passed the Assembly, protecting special interests and not the public interest,” said Tabaku. The DP MP described this draft law as a clear indicator of a problematic governance model, where public assets and state properties are distributed without competition and transparency. According to her, this model not only violates fair competition, but also contributes to the further impoverishment of the country.

At the core of her criticism was the way the government is handling the European integration process. Tabaku emphasized that integration cannot be reduced to the formal fulfillment of criteria on paper, but requires real implementation of standards in practice. She recalled that the Albanian government has made commitments to suspend the law on strategic investments, within the framework of the obligations of Chapter 31 of the negotiations with the EU, while, according to her, the opposite is happening: the expansion of privileges for certain investors.

"In any public procurement, even for a pen, competition and procedure are required. While for the largest public assets, they are awarded without competition. This is unacceptable," she stressed. Another element that raised concern was the accelerated procedure for approving the law, which Tabaku described as one of the fastest acts ever approved in the Assembly, avoiding the necessary debates and consultations.

In conclusion, Tabaku called on European institutions and member states to pay increased attention to developments in Albania, especially at this stage of the opening of negotiations. “Today is the moment to pay more attention to every law that is adopted in Albania, because these are not simply legal acts, but directly affect the integration process and the rule of law,” she concluded.