Denada Jushi
Every four years Albanians vote. Every day SPAK opens files. Of the country's 61 municipalities, 40 have been or are currently under criminal investigation. Mayors are accused mainly of one thing: tenders. Where roads, water supply and schools should have been built, corruption schemes were built. This is the story of most Albanian municipalities in 2025.
"We vote for them so we can have water, electricity, and roads, but we see them on television stealing!" - this is how a resident of Vlora expressed it, whom we contacted this weekend to ask if the water had started to come regularly.
Citizens elect local leaders every four years with the aim of improving living standards through investment. In Albania, there are two completely different realities when it comes to the work of the administration.
On the one hand, according to the government, the work of the administration is at an excellent level.
"I was afraid we would lose our reputation, I am proud that our administration received applause for the negotiations with the EU," Prime Minister Rama said a few days ago.
But, paradoxically, in the same week, data shows that 40 out of 61 municipalities in the country have investigative files in the Special Prosecution Office.
Municipalities are the institution closest to citizens, responsible for Services such as infrastructure, water supply, waste management, urban transport or maintenance of public spaces. If these institutions were functioning well, citizens would directly benefit from investments and Services. However, an examination of the files shows that these institutions are affected by corruption and abuse of public funds.
According to data published by SPAK, since the establishment of this structure until today, 40 of the country's 61 municipalities have had or continue to have open investigative files. 16 mayors or former mayors have faced charges mainly related to corruption and abuse of office.
One of the most recent cases is that of the former mayor of Memaliaj, who will face court for violations during a tender for the area's water supply, with a fund of around 493 million lek.
The biggest abuses?
Tenders for water supply and local road reconstruction are among the procedures where abuses have been most frequently identified. One of the most classic forms where these violations have been discovered has been cases identified following denunciations by operators who lost in competitions or even from audits conducted by financial control institutions.
SPAK 2025 Report The report highlights that the manipulation of public procurement procedures is one of the most common forms of corruption in public administration. According to the report, investigations have shown that the tendering process was often manipulated from the stage of preparing the documentation.
"The public procurement process was manipulated at every stage, from the preparation of documentation to the execution of contracts. The heads of contracting authorities and responsible officials drafted technical specifications and calculated funds in favor of certain operators," the SPAK report states.
The document also emphasizes that in many cases competitors' bids were deliberately disqualified, while formal controls over the procedures were not carried out by competent persons.
"As a result, the procurement process has functioned not as a legitimate instrument for public investment, but as a mechanism for misappropriation of funds and illicit gains," the report notes.
According to SPAK, corruption in public institutions is often structured and involves different levels of administration. Investigations have shown cases where public officials collaborated with operators to manipulate tender documentation and limit funds, ensuring predetermined results.
Local government experts consider this situation as an alarm signal for the functioning of local administration.
The executive director of the Institute for Municipalities of Albania, Agron Haxhimali, says that the large number of municipalities involved in the investigations indicates a serious problem.
"The large number of municipalities under investigation by SPAK indicates two things: a high level of suspicion of corruption in local government and a greater activation of justice institutions in investigating public officials. But this figure should not be seen as a statistic, but as a disease that needs to be cured," says Haxhimali.
According to him, one of the main problems is related to the transparency of tendering procedures. The transparency of tenders in municipalities is limited, because the procedures may be formally public, but detailed information and real competition are not always guaranteed.
Although control mechanisms such as state audit, SPAK, and the courts exist, their effectiveness often depends on how they are implemented in practice.
"We need more responsibility and professional integrity, but also strengthening internal auditing in local units as a preventive mechanism," adds Haxhimali.
The Albanian Center for Quality Journalism contacted the GJKKO to find out how many cases have completed trial and how these cases have ultimately resulted, but so far we have not received a response.
For lawyer Ili Gerdupi, corruption at the local level is not only related to legal loopholes.
“The problem of corruption at the local level is not only related to legal restrictions. Corruption is not prevented only by tendering procedures, but by creating an alternative approach to procurement that encourages the participation of larger companies and real competition,” he says.
Gerdupi also points out that one of the reasons why some cases take so long in court is related to the lack of personal security measures for defendants.
“When personal security measures are not applied to defendants, there is no binding deadline for the courts and trials are often prolonged,” the lawyer explains.
He adds that in criminal investigations the focus remains on the individual and not on the systemic problem. Problems in local government have also been highlighted in international reports. According to the European Union's progress report For Albania, decentralization has made some steps forward, but significant challenges still remain.
The progress report emphasizes that the division of powers between the central government and local government remains unclear and that municipalities continue to have significant financial dependence on the government.
Also, another issue is related to administrative capacities, especially in smaller municipalities, where the lack of qualified staff affects the management of projects and public funds. While the financial situation is more worrying.
According to the report "Local Government in Albania, report on the situation 2024"published by the Institute for Municipalities of Albania, the arrears of 61 municipalities in the country reached about 3.2 billion lek, or about 33 million euros. The report highlights that 14 municipalities have increased their debt during 2024, while four of them, such as Kavajë, Vorë, Cërrik and Dimal, are considered to be in serious financial difficulties.
The year 2027 is approaching and Albania's aspiration to become an EU member state was clearly seen in the May 11 elections, where the government focused precisely on this journey. But how have member states solved the problem of reducing corruption?
In Estonia, for example, almost all public contracts are published online and procurement procedures are conducted through digital platforms, reducing human intervention and opportunities for manipulation.
An idea that was attempted to be implemented in Albania through a series of digitalization processes, but which was soon accompanied by problems and accusations of corruption, leaving citizens without Services for months.
In Romania, an important role in the fight against corruption has been played by the National Anticorruption Directorate (DNA), a structure similar to SPAK, specialized in investigating ministers, deputies, and mayors.
Meanwhile, in countries like Finland and Denmark, public administrations operate on the basis of meritocracy and professionalism. Administration employees do not change with every political rotation and recruitment is done through transparent competitions.
European experience shows that corruption is not reduced through criminal penalties alone, but through a combination of reforms that include financial transparency, professional administration, and independent control institutions. But above all, political will is required to achieve this.
SPAK's investigations have brought about a change: fear has entered the municipal offices. But fear is not reform. Punishment is not a system. Albania needs not only good prosecutors, but good municipalities, institutions that citizens see as solutions, not as problems./acqj.al
