"2 million euros to destroy the Bënjë Baths"/ Zhupa: The situation today is scandalous, accountability must be held

2026-06-25 11:03:00, Aktualitet CNA

"2 million euros to destroy the Bënjë Baths"/ Zhupa: The

Democratic Party MP and Chairwoman of the Culture, Tourism and Diaspora Committee, Ina Zhupa, has reacted to the intervention in the Bënjës Baths, describing them as a destruction of one of the country's most precious natural and tourist assets.

In her post on social media, Zhupa has published videos of the concreting and destruction and states that around 2 million euros of public funds are being spent on a project that is damaging the ecosystem and natural identity of the area.

According to her, this is the second time that citizens have paid for interventions in Benja, as the previous investment, worth around 200 thousand euros, proved unsuccessful.

Zhupa calls for transparency and accountability for the use of public funds, emphasizing that the Benja Baths need protection and careful management, not concreting and interventions that risk damaging an irreplaceable natural asset.

Full reaction:

2 million euros from the ADF, to destroy one of Albania's most precious natural assets with citizens' money is scandalous!

This video was sent to me by a citizen, who denounces the alarming situation and the damage being done to the Bënjës Spa, one of the country's rarest natural and tourist gems.

The citizen informs me that every year there were vacationers with fractures or injuries who were taken to the Përmet hospital after falling in that area, until the baths were closed last week.

The thermal springs, canyons of Langarica, and the unique landscape have been a special destination for Albanian and foreign visitors for decades, an asset that should be protected and promoted, not concreted over and destroyed.

The worst thing is that this is the second time that citizens pay for the same story of failure. Previous works cost about 200 thousand euros, but the results on the ground had nothing to do with the presented project. The photos of the project and those of the implementation are like night and day. The money was spent, but the investment failed.

Instead of being held accountable for that failure and bringing the matter to justice, the Albanian Development Fund opened another tender with the object of "Integrated intervention to strengthen the tourism potential in natural areas, Region 4: Bënja - International Tourist Destination", with a fund limit of 2 million euros.

Instead of preserving nature, a unique ecosystem is being aggressively encroached upon. The images speak of a concrete construction project that is devastating the country.

This is not a restoration intervention, nor a studied intervention in harmony with the ecosystem. This is a waste of public funds, a lack of accountability, and another example of how Albania's natural resources are treated as ownerless property. First we pay for a project that is not properly implemented, then we pay again to correct the failure, while in the end nature comes out more damaged than before.

The Bënja Baths do not need concrete, they need protection, careful management and investments that respect their nature, history and identity.

Who will be held responsible for the damage caused? Who will account for the hundreds of millions of lek spent, while an irreplaceable natural asset is being degraded before our eyes? /CNA