TIRANA – The fourth cabinet of Prime Minister Edi Rama took office today, after the swearing-in ceremony before the President of the Republic. It was approved by the parliament yesterday in a short and tense session.
Following his fourth consecutive victory in April’s parliamentary election, Rama’s new cabinet was approved by the parliament on Thursday.
During his presentation of the program of the new government, Edi Rama “gave the floor” to the AI-generated bot named Diella, which he nominated for the Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, in a move that attracted global attention.
After the opposition MPs started to protest the speech of the AI, Rama warned that “if you won’t allow a normal debate here in this hall, we’ll go to the voting process”. The exact thing happened, and the government was voted in minutes later, causing outrage from the opposition, who blocked the floor and threw objects at the cabinet ministers.
The opposition Democratic Party subsequently demanded the cancellation of the session. Party leader Sali Berisha accused Rama of “annihilating” the parliament and compared him to the dictator Enver Hoxha.
Speaking in Parliament yesterday, Rama said that “Albania 2030 in the EU is the headline of this mandate. European Albania is the guiding compass of every page of our program and the metronome of the rhythm of every reform we will undertake”.
The new government consists of 17 members. Elisa Spiropali, who previously held the office of the Speaker of Parliament, was appointed as Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, replacing Igli Hasani.
Majlinda Dhuka has remained Minister of State and Chief Negotiator with the European Union.
