While immigrants were eyeing to participate in the parliamentary polls, the Albanian diaspora was even left without a ministry established to represent their interests. Prime Minister Edi Rama organized two summits for the diaspora and on both occasions promised to include their votes, although he won his third term without a single extraterritorial vote.
“The Minister of State for Albanian living abroad will obviously be Pandeli Majko”.
Four years ago, Rama trusted Majko to lead a ministry that lacked any portfolio, such as the Diaspora ministry.
According to him, the scope was to shift more attention to Albanians living and working outside the country’s borders.
At the time, the Albanian premier was clear on the role that Majko would undertake.
“The vote of the immigrants and a structured rapprochement of the diaspora with the country’s economy are things that cannot be left to time, but be enabled through our work, the work of this government”, said Rama.
But despite his vow, emigrants did not vote at the parliamentary polls held in April.
In November 2016, Rama called another summit for the diaspora, inviting also Kosovo’s former President Hashim Thaçi, as well as several ministers from North Macedonia. At the summit, Rama once again reiterated his promise to make it possible for Albanian immigrants to vote in the elections.
“In order to give all those living outside the country their right to participate in the democratic process, but without actually needing to physically be present at the ballot centers”, he said.
In March 2019, a second summit echoed the objectives of the previous one.
“There are only two ways to us, we either do it or do it”, said Rama at the time.
But one promise replaced another, and immigrant voting never materialized, while the Ministry of Diaspora was dismantled altogether.
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