The smoke of Elbasan, as a symbol of gluttony and shamelessness

2025-07-02 17:59:00, Opinione Armand Shkullaku

While Albania is "getting closer" to the European Union with giant steps, with Edi alone, Albanians are the only citizens in all of Europe who, along with the air, also inhale the carcinogenic smoke of all kinds of garbage that is burned in open fields throughout the country. Those who promised to clean Albania from the waste that was burned on the streets for 20 years or so (a promise made by Edi Rama in voice and image) have today covered the country with smoke and a terrible smell, from Vlora to Elbasan, but only after they have extorted almost half a billion euros with the theft of the century project, that of the incinerators.

In the place where today tons of garbage are being burned like in the Middle Ages, Edi Rama had Rilindja MPs sitting down, boasting about the rare works that would incinerate waste, produce energy and make Albania a model of cleanliness, without having to follow the EU strategy for their recycling. Even back then, with full awareness, the prime minister lied in front of the parliamentary investigative committee, declaring that the Tirana incinerator had the guarantee of the internationally renowned company, Paul Wurth. In fact, today everyone knows that the only fame of this affair remained the international record of the robbery of hundreds of millions of euros without a single kilogram of waste being incinerated.

There is no more ruthless symbol than the smoke that covered Elbasan and its surroundings today, to expose the gluttony of a government and the shamelessness of a system that sought to sell theft as development. Under the carcinogenic clouds that cover the Albania of 2025, even the Albania of the famous summits, how might Edi Rama's crazy rush to sign the incinerator project as soon as possible look now? The declaration of a state of emergency 10 years ago precisely in Elbasan with the justification that the burning of garbage in the landfill was poisoning the city? What about the lightning decisions of the Council of Ministers, the competition without a tender, the bonus without the company being registered yet and the monopoly of a business worth billions donated to anonymous duplicitous people, prescient of the Rilindja dome? All of this, under the direction of a man who assigns you a foreign architect even if you build your own house, but who had the double trust to blindly give them 430 million euros.

The barbaric burning of garbage today is not only evidence of a monumental robbery but also a monument to those who had the courage to propagate it as progress. Once again, under the clouds of smoke covering Elbasan and Vlora, how can the enthusiastic voices that speak of the advantages of the incineration technology that was being put into practice thanks to the vision of Edi Rama now sound? What about those who explained how much energy Albania would benefit when the two-clique burned the waste in Elbasan, Fier and Tirana? What about those who accused the opposition and the critical media of promoting the progress of European Albania?

Today, we all breathe the same air. Even children inhale the terrible particles produced by burning garbage in nature. Even the children of our children's heroes, who never dared to scratch the surface of a terrifying affair that, after stealing hundreds of millions of euros from Albanians, now risks stealing their lives.

Meanwhile, in the absurdity of a “European” country burning garbage in the open, we will continue to listen to the stories of the summer propaganda nights . They show that the ability of our leader is so magical that the EU will accept us into its bosom without the smoke blinding its eyes. They also show how we are stunning the world with agritourism and organic products, despite the air in which they grow and the water from the valleys. Then the Maldives of Europe and the pure rivers will be sung… A true paradise, where the sick increase and the healthy leave.