Vlorë: Nano left us
The people: If there is no investment, scarcity and poverty will continue
Vlorë: Nano left us
Businessmen protest: Where are the promises?
The Investors’ Association in the city of protests is still waiting for help
Strike: What the people gained
Lirita Spahiu
During yesterday’s lunch hour, many people protested in front of the government headquarters. Some of them, holding placards in their hands, raised their voices against the failure to fulfill the promises made to Vlorë. All these people, members of the “Vlorë Investors’ Association”, protested yesterday in front of the Prime Minister’s Office for the umpteenth time, accusing the “Nano” government of having left the city of Vlorë forgotten. The signs held by the businessmen called for “non-discrimination”, “no boycott” and compensation from the government for the heavy damage caused to their businesses during the unrest. According to the association’s chairman, Ilir Velo, owner of the “Vlora” hotel, “the central government is treating us unfairly, because it is fulfilling all the compensation requests of Saranda and ignoring our requests. During the election campaign all the political parties, including the Socialists, declared that after Nano came to power, Vlorë would be considered the first city in terms of investment, as the martyr city of the greatest national tragedy. On the basis of these statements we decided to vote for the Socialists. But even though they came to power, they did not help us.” The businessman Velo further emphasized that the government is investing only in the Tirana-Durrës corridor and only in the south. “For Vlorë, they are content with slogans and empty promises. To be fair, the government has started a few small investments in the city’s infrastructure, but they are insufficient for the rebirth of this city. So far, Vlorë’s coastline, once a wonder of nature, has been turned into a shelter for dogs,” he said.
The protest was joined not only by investors from Vlorë, but also by ordinary citizens of the city who had come especially by bus. When asked why they were taking part in the protest, one of them said: “The fate of Vlorë is closely tied to investment. Any development in this city begins with investment. If investors do not come and set up their businesses here, Vlorë has no future. Day by day we are becoming poorer. In Vlorë there is a severe shortage of drinking water and electricity. Drinking water comes for one hour a day. People are forced to buy water in stores in order to drink. Thousands of people have been forced to leave Vlorë, especially including intellectuals.”
The Vlorë Investors’ Association has repeatedly addressed both the previous and the current government with concrete requests for infrastructure investment in Vlorë and for the creation of a free customs zone, but so far it has received no response. On this occasion the investors said that if the Albanian government does not keep its promises and invest in Vlorë, a large part of them will withdraw their capital from this city and will be forced to look at another market.
According to them, as a result of the departure of these investors, Vlorë will lose jobs, hotels, supermarkets, restaurants, shopping centers, workshops and private factories, as well as much other income. Afterwards, the protesters announced that they would continue their protests until the problem is resolved. Yesterday’s protest was also attended by the chairman of the Albanian Business Association of Tiranë, Sherif Merdani, with a group of businessmen from the capital, who declared that they would support the Vlorë investors in their demands.
Strike: What the people gained