A general should be humble and a shepherd should be embarrassed By Teodor KEKO When two days ago I showed you my distance from this information, in which he declared that, as I was waiting, Albania would be known from this, that is the crime in my name. I do not know on what logic Mr. Meidani has based such an insistence, but from the outset I must say that I have no sympathy for ideas and tendencies of this kind. Nor do I intend to engage in any subtle analysis of what Mr. Meidani calls the “values of the elite”, nor do I claim to defend a pleiad of well-known people who might be able to successfully replace the head of government. I am interested only in the fact that, if it is true that the current prime minister is the product of this “elite”, then he is causing it to blush with shame, with one eye open and one eye closed. In 1997 the head of this cabinet had no qualification worthy of politics and vocation. He had only one determination: to interpret a circumstance dishonestly in his own favor. Calm and convinced that the consequences of the regions would be erased with a stroke of the political and administrative pen, he proclaimed himself “a man of this country”, while in reality he did nothing more than reveal a typical tendency of the failed man: that he has neither broad vision nor the iron patience not to be frightened by the increasing turmoil. First of all, I believe that the prime minister, who took office not as the result of an uncontested election, but as a consequence of a climate worsened by statements, actions and instability, has no right to lead us as a nation bewildered by the chaos of ’97. He is the product of this spirit and cannot present himself as its healer. If Albanian politics seeks to show a more dignified face, it must begin with itself. To some extent it is strange that the discussion about Nano’s successor has flared up right now, when the country needs institutional stability more than ever. But perhaps that is precisely the reason: a lack of trust in a government that appears weak, burdened by improvisation and a kind of empty arrogance. In these conditions, it is no surprise that various names are circulating, not because they represent a clear alternative, but because there is a visible fatigue with the current style of leadership. Then the question that arises is this: does Albania need a general or a statesman? A figure who commands with an order-giving tone and theatrical gestures, or a person who understands that modern politics requires maturity, patience and responsibility? If we continue to confuse uniform with authority and rhetoric with seriousness, we risk producing only more noise and less state. Vizioni, www.balkanweb.com

Pollo: Here is the “inventory” of meetings in America P. 3

Melo: PS, not the only one in the sins of the co- governing coalition P. 3

Vajh Koreshi: Politics is measu- red by natio- nal ideals P. 3

Vizioni, www.balkanweb.com

Majko is conducting an illegal campaign P. 12

The ghost of communism awakens P. 3

Wealth is not inherited P. 5

Today, at 11.00, in the conference hall of the PR the leadership of the Party of the districts for a press conference. P. 11

Online Albania

The first private insurance company in Tirana, Durrës, Shkodër, Vlorë, Fier, Gjirokastër, Korçë, Elbasan The first private insurance company in Tirana, Durrës, Shkodër, Vlorë, Fier, Gjirokastër, Korçë, Elbasan ADDRESS: Rr. “A. Xhuvani” “Vllazërimi” Building Opposite Tirana, Durrës, 1 Apartment 1 Car 1 Tourist Trip • Vote 50 lekë

September 1999 19