Albania is hostage to an opposition that fails to become an alternative

2026-04-18 09:01:00, Opinione Ardi Stefa

One sentence sums up the entire Albanian political situation: The government must fall, but no one in Albania knows who to bring in to replace it.

And this is where our tragicomedy begins. When a country cannot produce an alternative, it recycles failure.

Currently, we do not have a simple crisis of power. Power has been in crisis for years: in a crisis of credibility, in a crisis of trust, in a crisis of meritocracy, inspiration, in a crisis of justice!

But in fact, in Albania we have an alternative crisis to the government. A vacuum that is not filled with protest cries, worn-out slogans, pathetic speeches, Molotov cocktails, or leaders who recycle themselves, despite the fact that decades of transition have expired on the shelf, but with stubbornness and persistence, new products have taken their place.

Yesterday's protest? Yes, it was a protest, even though it was the smallest national protest with the lowest participation. Yes, it was also noisy. Yes, it dealt another psychological blow to the government. Yes, it was echoed in the international media, but again, violence echoed and not the alternatives that were unfolded. There were also those who rushed to proclaim it as evidence of a "new credibility" of the opposition.

But this is a dangerous misreading. Because participating in a protest is not automatically a vote of confidence. It is often just an outburst of discontent. A street demonstration is not a contract for tomorrow.

At the end of the protest, that bitter feeling of success remained: "that operation that was successful, but the patient died."

The problem is that the essence is not understood. It is not that citizens no longer leave their homes; it is that they no longer go to the ballot box. It is not that they do not understand what Berisha said yesterday about Hungary. And this is no coincidence. The abandonment of the elections in Albania is an act of pure distrust. And this distrust has a name.

The name is today's opposition, its leader and the entourage around him. It is useless for Sali Berisha to behave as a victim of a system that, in fact, he knows better than anyone, because he was its architect. Every criticism is an "attack orchestrated by the government", every failure is a "conspiracy", every loss is a "theft".

This is the oldest alibi in the book of political failures: when you can't convince the citizens, declare the media your enemy. When you can't win elections, declare reality stolen. When you are weak and have no convincing alternatives, find enemies within the party and deny the race. A worn-out theater that no longer convinces anyone except those who have decided not to look at reality anymore.

The truth is much simpler: the blame for the low turnout in protests and the opposition's electoral losses does not lie solely with propaganda, nor solely with the opponent.

The fault lies with the opposition leadership itself. When a leader lies for too long, there comes a point when it is no longer a matter of conviction, but a matter of lost credibility. And credibility, unlike power, is not regained with shouting and Molotov cocktails.

Yes, today the "regime" was scared, but not terrified. The fear of the "regime" was seen in its nervousness, in the immediate and disproportionate reaction of the police. But a regime does not fall from the fear of one day. It falls when an alternative arises in front of it that leaves no other choice.

And today this alternative is missing. Unfortunately, the opposition and Berisha's party are not an alternative.

Despite the pathetic thanks on the DP steps, the government did not fall yesterday. And not because there was or is no anger. Anger is everywhere: in prices, in immigration, in injustices, in the collective fatigue of a society that is emptying, in the lack of justice and meritocracy. But anger without direction is simply energy that is spent in vain and tires even the angriest.

The next promise from the ranks of the DP? "It will be overthrown in next month's protest," a familiar refrain, illusions that are endlessly postponed, while the reality remains the same.

The bitter truth is: Until the opposition breaks free from the model that has brought it to this point, there is no protest that will save it. There is no rhetoric that will revive it. There is no one to blame but itself.

Albania today is not hostage to a strong government. It is hostage to an opposition that fails to become an alternative.

To put it bluntly: "This opposition is the regime's best investment, because this opposition, with this kind of mindset, keeps the regime afloat!"

This is the problem. And for this very reason, it continues to remain unresolved./ CNA