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Who obstructs the setting up of the ZECs?
The Albanian Helsinki Committee (AHC) has on more than one occasion publicly expressed
concern that delays in preparations for the parliamentary elections may lead to harmful consequences.
In the current phase, this concern is becoming concrete, as legal violations are evident.
March 3rd, 2005 was the final deadline by when all zonal election commissions (ZECs) had to be set up. The obstacle has been the six relevant political parties that have the right to propose members in these commissions. In fact, they had to submit their proposals to the CEC not later than February 16 of this year, because according to item 5 of article 34 of the Electoral Code "The CEC shall appoint members of the ZECs not later than 15 days from the submission of proposals …”. Within this 15-day deadline, the CEC
is obliged to verify whether the submitted proposals meet or not the legal criteria and conditions to be a member and a secretary of the ZEC.
It has been 21 days since the ZECs should have been set up, whereas the CEC spokesperson continues to call upon political
parties to hurry with their proposals for ZEC members.
The AHC takes into consideration the fact that in this year's parliamentary elections, for the first time, according to the Electoral Code, the vote count will not take place in the polling stations, but in
large zone-based halls and will be subject to a not-so-easy procedure. As a result, the ZEC will be engaged in a very important and delicate process. This necessitates that proposals for ZEC members should be not only rigorously compliant to the law in order to avoid their replacement, also that their training be complete, detailed, and comprehensive. In this regard, haste at the cost of
quality would be impardonable.
While making a serious assessment of the created situation, the AHC suggests that,
in the spirit of constitutional competencies pursuant to the Electoral Code, and for the interest of the proper conduct of different aspects of the electoral process, the CEC determine a final deadline by which political parties should submit to the CEC their proposals for ZEC members.
The AHC also suggests to the CEC that after this deadline, political parties failing to exercise this right be subjected
to item 6 of article 34 of the Electoral Code by granting this right automatically to other political parties next on the list according to the number of seats in Parliament.
Tirana, 23 March 2005
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