The current Prime Minister of Kosovo and leader of the ruling "Self-Determination" Movement; Albin Kurti has accused the parties that were in opposition in the previous Kosovo parliament of blocking the work of parliament after the parliamentary elections on February 9, Kosovo media reported.
He did this today in Pristina, a day after the 21st attempt to elect a speaker of parliament also failed. The next continuation of the constituent session of the Kosovo parliament is scheduled for tomorrow, May 27.
According to Kurti, the opposition is deliberately obstructing the establishment of the parliament and the solution to break the impasse is a secret ballot for its president, the "Economy Online" news agency reports.
Since April 15, the Kosovo parliament has failed to be established, as its work has been blocked after the first two items on the agenda - the certification of mandates and the swearing-in of members of parliament. The process stopped at the third item - the election of the parliament speaker, due to the name proposed by the winner of the February elections, the "Self-Determination" Movement - the resigned Minister of Justice, Albulena Haxhiu. Her candidacy has failed to garner the required 61 votes in the country's 120-seat parliament so far.
The "Self-Determination" Movement (LVV) has demanded a switch from an open to a secret ballot for the speaker of parliament in order to avoid pressure on MPs during the vote, but this proposal has also failed to garner sufficient support in parliament. According to opposition party deputies in the previous parliament, the secret ballot is "unconstitutional".
Kurti said that the opposition is obstructing the quorum for the creation of a committee for a secret ballot for a new speaker of the legislative body "unfairly and to the detriment of the state".
Regarding his party's nomination, Kurti stressed that "Albulena Haxhiu is not in question".
In the February 9 elections, the left-wing nationalist "Self-Determination" Movement (LVV) won 48 seats in the Kosovo parliament. It is followed by the center-right Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) with 24 seats, the center-right Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) with 20 seats, the coalition around Ramush Haradinaj's right-wing Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) with 5 seats, and Fatmir Limaj's center-left INITIATIVE (NISMA) with 3 seats. The remaining 20 seats are guaranteed to minority communities regardless of whether they pass the 5 percent threshold for entering parliament - 10 for Serbs and a total of 10 for Turks, Bosniaks, Roma, Ashkali, Egyptians, and Gorani.
To elect both the speaker of parliament and the government, a majority of 61 votes is required, which none of the political formations has. The Constitution of Kosovo does not stipulate a time limit for the formation of the parliament after the certification of the election results or after the swearing-in of the deputies. However, without the establishment of the parliament, the countdown to the formation of a new government cannot begin.
In Kosovo, up to two unfulfilled mandates can be returned. The mandate holder has 15 days to return a fulfilled mandate, and if a new government is not formed after the second attempt, the president is obliged to call new elections, which must be held no later than 40 days from the issuance of the decree for them.