Citizens of Prishtina will be left without public or private transport as of Monday, November 24, due to the budget blockage by the Ministry of Finance. This was confirmed on Sunday by the Mayor of Prishtina, Përparim Rama, during a press conference.

Rama stated that the budget has been blocked for political reasons, saying that vital services of the capital are on the verge of being shut down.

“For over a year, continuously and fully in accordance with legal procedures, we have requested the allocation of the budget that belongs to the capital. Not a single request has been addressed; the budget has been blocked for primarily political reasons.

35 million euros — of which 25 million are the municipality’s own revenues and 10 million are government grants — have been blocked by the Ministry of Finance in violation of the law and the Constitution,” Rama said.

He added that they have also received further warnings from public companies that have not received payments for months. According to Rama, citizens are being put at risk due to electoral interests.

“I have just concluded a meeting with representatives of urban transport and the association of private sector transporters, who informed me, unfortunately, that starting tomorrow public transport in the capital will come to a halt. We have received similar warnings from other companies that have not been paid for months, jeopardizing essential services for citizens.

With regret, I say that I did not believe the people of this country would be put at risk for electoral interests. The capital’s budget was used as a tool in the local elections — you know they have concluded — and citizens voted for development, not for obstruction,” he added.

Rama further stated that the urban transport services have gone unpaid for many months and that the situation has reached the point of service shutdown for citizens. He called on all state institutions and the acting Ministry of Finance to act professionally and in accordance with the law.