Meksi: They forgot that I was prime minister On the 20th anniversary of PD’s first government, former prime minister Meksi and former minister Shehi speak The account of the former head of government in 1992: “I informed the president about the pyramids” Dashamir Shehi: “We made mistakes with property, the police and privatizations in government” The News Former prime minister Aleksandër Meksi, on the 20th anniversary of the first post-communist government, says that the reforms at that time were difficult, listing one after another all the stages through which the government he led had passed. He said that abolishing the 80 percent rule was not painful. TIRANA Jakin Marena The former prime minister of the first democratic government that came to power after 45 years of harsh communist dictatorship, Aleksandër Meksi, tells the newspaper... Continues on pages 8-9 In the photo: Aleksandër Meksi and Dashamir Shehi

STATEMENT ON “TOP STORY” Fatos Nano: I declare myself a candidate for President “I will meet Berisha, Rama, Meta and the others. I welcome cooperation” TIRANA Sokol Balla Former prime minister Fatos Nano announced last night on “Top Story” his ambition to be the candidate for the next president in July. Mr. Nano said that he would seek support... Pages 4-5

REPORT Page 11

IMPORTS Damir Fazlliç at Rinas The opposition in Parliament: Energy in the hands of the Serbian mafia Page 6

Editorial BY ALBA MALLTEZI The government is afraid of Shqiptarja.com polls A strange phenomenon has recently been happening with the polls on our website www.shqiptarja.com. The phenomenon started with the poll “Whom would you prefer as a member of the High Council of Justice?”, not so much because of the poor poll results, but because of the sudden and unexpected number of votes. In fact, we were monitoring it together with our webmaster and site manager Ersan Karameto. The anomaly of the last four polls, namely the increase or manipulation of the result in favor of people holding high positions in the Government, a ministerial building, the prime minister and people close to him, has also been noticed by our regular readers who have written to us a lot. They have noticed the anomalies: 1-Do you think the Minister of Justice Eduard Halimi should resign after the facts published by Shqiptarja.com?... Continues on page 4

Comment BY ARBEN MEÇAJ The tow-truck mafia, Basha’s achievement For more than twenty days, my car has been in the premises of the Municipal Police in Tirana, waiting for the reply to a complaint I filed, which contests the penalty imposed on the vehicle during towing by tow truck. Until today, no answer, except: According to the law, the deadline for a response is until atit...(?) One month for the answer. One month, during which I must keep the car blocked (I cannot retrieve it without a response to the complaint). Thank you, oh State! Thank you, Municipality! To be honest, the complaint was filed precisely to confirm this aspect of municipal arrogance, and of those who have turned the Law, Force, and Procedure into an instrument for illegal profit, a grotesque situation. I had long been hearing about citizens’ concerns regarding tow trucks, and the activity of... Continues on page 22

ATHENS Page 13

ACCUSATIONS Page 3

BEQIR META Page 14

5 16 38 * 64 8 29 40 52 69 9 17 44 * 68 11 30 43 * 70 1 28 39 * * APPROVED BY THE MINISTRY OF FINANCE TICKET PRICE 25 LEK

“FUNDJAVA” Our anxiety for the climbers on Mount Everest The relatives’ account of the Albanians who are attempting the summit today Pages 15-21

1991 ... always one step ahead... Spices and dried fruits Address: Tirana-Durrës Highway, km 7, Vjosëk Tiranë; Tel: 042 406 500; 042 406 501; Fax 042 406 502; e-mail: neranxi@neranxi.com www.neranxi.com

EKSPRES BINGO ALBANIAN BINGO [SHQIPTARJA.com] Today and tomorrow, the “Ekspres Bingo” ticket booklet arrives Important notice: All readers who buy the newspaper shqiptarja.com in a place where telebingo tickets are not sold must go to the nearest EkspresBingo and Telebingo ticket sales point in order to register their ticket for the draw. You can find the nearest point by asking the seller where you bought the newspaper, or by calling 04 223 12 06 where the operators will give you the exact directions to the nearest point to register the ticket. The Telebingo staff read on page 24