The clash over the SHISH issue has moved to the table of the Conference of Chairpersons, where the opposition requested a parliamentary debate on institutional responsibilities surrounding former director Vlora Hyseni. The majority politically blocked the request, arguing that Parliament should not enter into a matter that, according to the official version, belongs to SPAK and the court.
What the PD requested at the Conference of Chairpersons
The request by the chairman of the Democratic Party’s parliamentary group centered on holding a parliamentary debate on the case of former State Intelligence Service director Vlora Hyseni.
According to the opposition’s request, the discussion should focus on institutional responsibilities for her appointment, exercise of duty, oversight and removal, as well as on the measures taken to protect classified information and institutional integrity.
The majority: Parliament should not enter the territory of justice
At the meeting, Taulant Balla presented the majority’s position, opposing the opening of a debate in Parliament on this issue.
According to him, any suspicion raised by the prosecution must be fully investigated by SPAK, and Parliament cannot replace the powers of the prosecution or the court.
Balla argued that prosecutors should be allowed to carry out the investigation independently, without interference or overlap from other institutions.
Reference to the Constitutional Court and the limits of parliamentary oversight
To support this position, Balla referred to the jurisprudence of the Constitutional Court, according to which Parliament cannot use instruments of parliamentary oversight to duplicate a criminal investigation.
According to him, neither a motion with debate nor a parliamentary investigative committee can be used to verify evidence, determine criminal facts or assign individual responsibilities.
In essence, the majority is maintaining the line that any involvement by Parliament at this stage would be considered interference in the investigative process.
The PS political message and the unresolved point of the debate
Balla said that the innocence or guilt of any official can be determined only by justice institutions and not by the majority or the opposition in the parliamentary chamber.
He added that no one is above the law and that, according to him, the majority should not act as counsel for anyone facing justice authorities.
However, the refusal of a parliamentary debate leaves open precisely the point the opposition seeks to raise: whether institutional responsibilities for the appointment, oversight and removal of a SHISH head can be treated only as a criminal matter, or also as an issue of political and institutional accountability.
In the end, the positions remained divided: the opposition wants political and institutional discussion in Parliament, while the majority insists the matter should be left to the justice system.
For now, the debate over SHISH is being pushed outside the parliamentary chamber, while the burden of public clarification remains with the investigation and the role of the institutions that have had oversight responsibilities.