The head of the Democratic Party’s Parliamentary Group, Gazment Bardhi, strongly criticized remarks made by the head of the Prison Police at the Security Committee about conditions and items found in inmates’ cells, including those of people linked to organized crime.
Bardhi described the official’s comments as scandalous and irresponsible, accusing him of trying to justify the luxury created inside the cells.
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According to the head of the DP parliamentary group, rather than explaining how prison premises were allowed to take on the appearance of luxury accommodation for people convicted of serious crimes, the director relied on the claim that cell customization is allowed in other countries too, and that the items found were excessive but not prohibited.
Bardhi notes that Albanian legislation and the General Prison Regulations clearly define which items may be kept in cells and how they must be managed. He views the director’s reasoning as an attempt to downplay violations and evade institutional responsibility.
STATEMENT BY THE HEAD OF THE DP PARLIAMENTARY GROUP, GAZMENT BARDHI
“The statement is scandalous, irresponsible and profoundly anti-state!
Instead of explaining who allowed it and how Albanian prison cells were transformed into five-star luxury hotels for dangerous figures in organized crime, the head of the Prison Police is trying to justify the situation with absurd arguments: that ‘other countries allow customization too’ or that ‘the items were excessive, but not prohibited.’
This reasoning is unacceptable and constitutes an overt attempt to relativize the violation of the law and evade institutional responsibility.
Albanian legislation and the General Prison Regulations clearly and exhaustively set out which items are allowed in cells and the conditions under which they are managed. No provision can be interpreted as permission for unlimited luxury, unjustified installations or private investments that undermine the regime and security of penitentiary institutions.
Justifying the unwarranted luxury enjoyed by figures in organized crime in Albanian prisons means accepting violations of the law as normal and betraying the mission of the institutions responsible for enforcing it.
In a state founded on accountability and the rule of law, after making such a statement, the head of the Prison Police should not return to his office as if nothing had happened. A responsible justice minister would immediately demand answers and take concrete action, including dismissing him.
Prisons are not luxury hotels, cells are not private property, and organized crime cannot enjoy privileges that ordinary citizens cannot even imagine. Prison security structures are responsible for ensuring that the law is enforced and that discipline and security are maintained—not for making organized crime comfortable!”
