After the vote on the territorial reform in Parliament, Socialist MP Ulsi Manja reacted with a direct political message, presenting the result as proof that the majority had not split. According to him, the initiative received 85 votes and internal debates within the PS did not affect the majority’s final position.
Manja sees the vote as a test of unity for the majority
In his public reaction, Manja stressed that the Socialists, according to his version, remained united despite differences that emerged during discussions on the territorial reform.
He insisted that the internal debate within the PS should not be read as a crisis or weakness, but as part of the party’s political functioning. In essence, his message was that the vote in Parliament put an end to any speculation about divisions within the majority.
He acknowledges he supported 36 municipalities, not the approved formula
In the same reaction, Manja said that his personal position had been in favor of a division into 36 municipalities, while maintaining the standard for minority municipalities.
This shows that within the majority there was not only procedural debate, but also different approaches to the depth of the intervention in the administrative map. However, he presented this discrepancy as part of the internal debate and not as opposition to the reform itself.
Attack on the opposition after the session and protest
A large part of Manja’s reaction was devoted to the opposition. He claimed that his political opponents had hoped for a split within the PS ranks, but that this was not reflected in the final vote in Parliament.
The Socialist MP also criticized the protest called by Sali Berisha, claiming that it did not achieve the political objective it sought. In line with the majority’s usual rhetoric, he presented the result inside the chamber and the turnout outside it as a double failure for the opposition.
Political message: 85 votes today, but also a signal for more
At the end of his reaction, Manja focused on the voting figure, underlining that the electronic board recorded 85 votes. Beyond the number, he used this result as a message of political strength and parliamentary discipline from the majority.
He went further by implying that the PS could secure even more support in the future, although he added that, according to him, such a thing is not necessary. His rhetoric aimed more at demonstrating political control than at clarifying the questions that the territorial reform has raised in public debate.
Manja’s reaction places the emphasis on the majority’s political gain after the vote, but does not provide answers to the concrete debates that have accompanied the change to the territorial map and the consequences this reform may have for local representation.
Beyond the triumphalist statements after the session, it remains to be seen how convincing the arguments will prove for a reform that has generated considerable opposition, both in politics and at the local level.