FM BASHA BATTLING PROSECUTORS, POLITICAL RIVALS

C O N F I D E N T I A L TIRANA 000873 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/11/2018 TAGS: PREL PGOV AL SUBJECT: FM BASHA BATTLING PROSECUTORS, POLITICAL RIVALS REF: A. TIRANA 870 ¶B. TIRANA 858 Classified By: Ambassador John L. Withers II, reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: After a long and contentious investigation, prosecutors have forwarded the indictment of Foreign Minister Lulzim Basha to the Supreme Court, which will rule on Basha's guilt or innocence (ref a). To make matters worse for Basha, newspapers today printed lengthy excerpts from the indictment, which was leaked to the press. Basha's defense has been further complicated by infighting within his Democratic Party, with Basha's opponents within the party reluctant to come to his defense in hopes that his legal woes will eliminate him as a potential political rival. END SUMMARY. Legal Troubles Only the Beginning -------------- ¶2. (C) Basha has not been accused of outright corruption. Instead, he has been charged with "abuse of office" and for violating "equal treatment in a tender process." In essence, Basha is being charged with negligent oversight and misrepresenting the projected costs of the Durres-Kukes road project while serving as Minister of Transportation - negligence which allegedly resulted in vast cost overruns totaling nearly 600 million euros. Basha's defense team - when not claiming that the charges are entirely politically motivated - claims that the approval and oversight of the road deal was a collective act by the Council of Ministers and others within the Ministry of Transport (ref b). Democratic Party Rivals Smell Blood -------------- ¶3. (C) Basha's legal troubles have been complicated by his precarious position within the Democratic Party, with political rivals such as Speaker of Parliament Josephina Topalli looking on with barely-disguised glee. Other PD officials such as Prime Minister Berisha have offered only lukewarm defenses of Basha, while still using the claim that the charges against Basha are politically motivated to further attack the Prosecutor General. Arben Cici, President Topi's Diplomatic Advisor, told PolOff that Basha has little to worry about from opposition parties - it's his own DP, Cici claimed, that is out to get Basha. Basha himself echoed this in a nearly hysterical phone call to the DCM in November, claiming that leaks to the media alleging ties between Basha's family and shady Bosnian businessman Damir Fazlic were coming from his political rivals within the DP. ¶4. (C) COMMENT: It remains to be seen how much political damage the indictment will do to Basha. His indictment is certainly an embarrassment to Prime Minister Berisha, who campaigned for office in 2005 on an anti-corruption platform. Basha's trial will probably begin in January and could drag on for several months - potentially complicating Basha's candidacy in the upcoming parliamentary elections. In the meantime, there is no indication that Basha will resign or get suspended pending the outcome of his trial. WITHERS