The Constitutional Court of Albania has declined to comment on President Bajram Begaj’s decision to decree November 9 as the date for early local elections in the Municipality of Tirana.

Asked by Euronews Albania journalist Enkelejda Mema about the constitutionality of the decree — given that former Tirana mayor Erion Veliaj’s legal team has filed an appeal with the Constitutional Court, and Article 115 of the Constitution stipulates that any decision is suspended pending review — the Court responded briefly:

“We have no comment on the matter.”

Meanwhile, the Presidency issued a press release clarifying the motivation behind the decree, stressing that Veliaj’s dismissal case does not fall under the Constitutional Court’s jurisdiction.

According to President Begaj, appeals against dismissal for failure to appear at work — as in Veliaj’s case — must be handled by the Administrative Court, not the Constitutional Court.