Xhaferri’s $100 million operation. The Government unblocks the transparency decree PD curses Fatos Nano Page 3

After Nano’s sensational promise during the election campaign, day by day we expected him to pull an ace from his sleeve and show how he would solve the national problem of the pyramid schemes. But, judging by how things look, his position is becoming increasingly sophisticated, with occasional statements and complicated sentences that lead nowhere. In an interview given yesterday to a foreign radio station, he set out several ways in which, according to him, the problem of the money taken by the pyramid schemes and ending up in Berisha’s pockets could be solved. These methods, he said, were finding out where the money had gone, various investments the government would make in cooperation with foreigners, and aid from the rest of the world. Nano particularly stressed that the government would not draw up lists. In other words, this means the money will not be returned to the individuals who invested in those companies, but that there will be a general inflow of money in various forms, which will end up in the pockets of the Albanian people. This statement finally removes the mask worn by the current prime minister throughout the entire campaign, which won his party a victory more than twice as large as the one it deserved. If we look a little more closely at what Nano says, we can clearly see that the methods he proposes push the solution to the problem into an infinitely distant future. For him to find out where the money has gone, how it was transferred, and which bank or safe it ended up in would mean that those involved in this business were complete fools, rather than the capable and skilled people who deceived an entire population for years. As for Nano’s claim that Albanians will benefit through investments, for us this is a very long-running story that began before the Nano 1 government was formed, continued through eight other governments, and we are all witnesses to the amount of investment and where it has ended up. Bovilla, the highway, telecommunications, and so on are enough to mention; today, in practice, they are a series of macro-lies. If Nano wants to investigate missing money, he could very well start with the money allocated to these investments, provided he is not afraid that some prominent figure involved in these massive thefts might be exposed. As for aid from the rest of the world that might come to ease the burden of the pyramid schemes, we can say that this prime minister is an expert at it, having done it brilliantly when he held this post a few years ago. Despite our burning desire to get our money back, with what Nano says, this desire is being abused day after day. If he is capable of keeping his word and giving us our money—day and helping us, we also know how to invest; we know how to help too, and we know how to put up with Nano’s sophistry. If he really gets the votes, this desire will be put off until ... [the final part of the column is difficult to read]

The victims of Peshkopi are being escorted to their final resting place. The death penalty is demanded for the criminals. Police: Revenge against the Prosecutor because of his duty. Page 5

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25 bullets for the 25-year-old in Elbasan. Pheasants “kill” the 15-year-old in Korçë. Viroi and Kardhiqi erupt again in Gjirokastër. His father’s gun wounds a boy in Tepelenë. Pages 5–7

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