FLASH
Shkruar nga Blendi Kajsiu
It was ugly the way our two-meter prime minister shouted and scolded some pensioners in the studio because they were not convinced by the economic miracle of the renaissance.
The pensioners' protest and the debate on pensions seem to have made Prime Minister Rama and his government very nervous. This nervousness was evident in his speech to parliament on the occasion of the approval of the end-of-year bonus for pensioners. The prime minister looked even more embarrassed in his confrontation with some pensioners on the show Blendi Fevziu's Opinion on October 31, 2024.
It was ugly the way our two-meter prime minister shouted and scolded some pensioners in the studio because they were not convinced by the economic miracle of the renaissance. Surrounded by people who have been feeding his ego for years in exchange for power and money, our socialist prime minister seems to have forgotten how to communicate with the needy.
To the simple question of a pensioner "how can I live with a pension of 200 thousand lek per month?" the prime minister replied, "we have doubled the Gross General Product (GDP) in just ten years". Of course, the explanation did not convince the pensioners at all. On the contrary, all the achievements of the government made even more mysterious the lack of increase of pensions at the same rate as income per capita (tripled), GDP and the state budget.
This is precisely where the nervousness that causes the issue of pensions for the current government originates. The miserable level of pensions crumbles the "economic miracle" of the renaissance for two reasons. First, the pension debate clearly shows that the economic growth that the Rama government is boasting about is more nominal than real. They often reflect inflation (and population decline) more than the increase in purchasing power for most citizens.
Secondly, the level of pensions shows that the development produced by the socialist government in these ten years has been concentrated in a few hands. Today in Albania there are over half a million pensioners who receive a pension of less than 200 thousand old lek per month. So half a million pensioners today receive a pension below the vital minimum.
According to the Prime Minister, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has increased 2.5 times and per capita income has tripled between 2013 and 2024 (also as a result of population decline). Meanwhile, according to the Prime Minister, pensions have increased by 80% in the same period of time (from 100 euros in 2013 to 180 in 2024). This means that pensioners have benefited less than other social groups from economic growth.
So we are dealing with a development model that has produced more benefits for the wealthiest layers, such as builders, big businesses and high levels of state administration (just remember that the salaries of high state officials and deputies doubled recently, going to about 15 times the average pension.)
Meanwhile, the groups that have benefited the least from socialist economic development are layers such as pensioners who still live below the vital minimum. According to an analysis by Monitor magazine, if in 2014 the average pension was 30% of the average gross salary, in 2023 this level was 22%. So we have an economic development that distributes less benefits to precisely those layers that need them the most.
This fact becomes even more prominent if we compare the level of economic development and pensions between Albania and its neighbors. Prime Minister Rama boasted that Albania has developed more than its neighbors in the last ten years. According to Prime Minister Rama today, in 2024, Albania will have a higher per capita income than North Macedonia and Bosnia-Herzegovina.
According to World Bank figures, Prime Minister Rama's claims are not true, since in the last report on the Western Balkans, Albania's per capita income in 2023 was below the level of North Macedonia and Bosnia, as well as the forecast for 2024, which still it is not closed.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Rama's argument is true that Albania's development rates have been higher than those of its neighbors, bringing our per capita income closer to that of Macedonia and Bosnia-Herzegovina. And yet something like this has not been observed with the level of pensions. Today, the average pension in Albania, about 180 euros, is much lower than in Macedonia and Bosnia-Herzegovina, where the average pension is over 300 euros per month.
In other words, the economic development in North Macedonia and Bosnia-Herzegovina distributes the benefits better than in Albania. The pensioners benefit from a larger pension in Macedonia and Bosnia than in Albania, even though our level of development is similar to the level of development of these countries.
If we get into the real and not nominal analysis of pensions, we will see that in fact the development produced by the Rama government has not only not affected but has impoverished our pensioners, as a result of inflation. When the prime minister boasted in Blendi Fevzi's studio that pensions had gone from an average of 100 euros in 2013 to 180 euros in 2024, he did not take into account the devaluation of the euro or the lek in these ten years.
Mjafton të kujtojmë se 100 euro dje ishin baraz me rreth 14 mijë lekë të reja, sepse 1 euro shkëmbehej me 140 lekë. Ndërkohë 180 euro sot janë më pak se 18 mijë lekë reja, sepse 1 euro shkëmbehet me më pak se 100 lekë. Kjo do të thotë se në dhjetë vitet e fundit pensioni mestar është rritur me 4 mijë lekë të reja, ose me 400 lekë të reja në vit. Vështirë ta quash mrekulli një rritje të tillë.
Edhe kjo pak rritje zhduket nëse marrim parasysh zhvlerësimin e lekut gjatë dekadës së fundit. Dje, në vitin 2013 pensionistët blinin më shumë gjëra me 14 mijë lekë të reja se sa mund të blejnë sot, në vitin 2024, me 18 mijë lekë të reja. Sipas një llogarie të Institutit të Sigurimeve Shoqërore pensionet reale jo vetëm nuk janë rritur por gjatë dekadës së fundit kanë rënë me të paktën 8% (dhe në disa raste më shumë) të vlerës së tyre reale. E thënë ndryshe, sot pensionistët me pensionin mesatar blejnë 8% më pak se dje, përpara mrekullisë ekonomike rilindase.
Pikërisht për këtë arsye çështja e pensioneve nxjerr zbuluar strukturën reale të modelit të zhvillimit Rama. Është një zhvillim që gjithnjë e më pak po prek, dhe në disa raste po varfëron, shtresat vulnerable, periferike dhe margjinale të shoqërisë shqiptare, që në fakt përbëjnë shumicën e popullsisë.
Prioritetet e këtij modeli nuk janë pensionet, strehimi i përballueshëm, çmimet, apo transporti publik, por ndërtimi i kullave spektakolare, aeroporteve, marinave të jahteve dhe tërheqja e turizmit elitar me pesë yjë, që jo vetëm nuk paguan taksa por përfiton edhe bregdet falas nga qeveria jonë.
Në qytetet kryesore të Shqiërisë sot si Durrësi, Vlora, dhe Tirana ka projekte madhështore për marina, porte jahtesh, aeroporte ndërkombëtare, rezorte elitare, kulla marramendëse, por ende nuk ka një stacion autobuzi të hajrit, apo transport publik cilësor, qoftë brenda qytetit, qoftë midis qyteteve. Është pikërisht ky transport që i shërben pensionistëve dhe qytetarëve të thjeshtë shumë më tepër se marinat e jahteve, rezortet, apo kullat dubaiste.
Edhe ato stacione autobuzësh që po ndërtohen prej vitesh janë degdisur në perferi të Tiranës, bashkë me stacionin e trenit që do jetë tek kthesa e Kamzës. Ndërkohë në qytetet kryesore të Evropës stacionet e trenave me krenari futen në zemër të qytetit, duke krijuar lehtësi të jashtëzakonëshme për udhëtarët. Vetëm kështu i jepet përparësi në autobuzit dhe trenit të pensionistëve dhe jo bencit dhe Range Roverit të milionerëve që tashmë bllokojnë trotuaret e Tiranës.
Në modelin zhvillimor të qeverisë “socialiste” Rama pensionistët zhvendosen jo vetëm në periferinë e zhvillimit ekonomik por edhe në periferinë e qytetit. Kullat, marinat, apartamentet, kafenetë dhe restorantet në qendër nuk preken me pension. Me pension mund të jetosh vetëm në periferi. Ndoshta prandaj qeveria ka vendosur aty edhe stacionin e autobuzit.
At the center of the Rama development model are those who have capital. The more economic and political capital you have, the more financial benefits and land our state gives you. If you don't believe me, ask Donald Trump's son-in-law, Mr. Jared Kushner, to whom our government may soon donate Sazan, and he will probably also waive taxes for his 7-star hotel where not only pensioners, but the vast majority of Albanians they will never be able to violate.
Meanwhile, the poorer you are, the less you benefit from government and our economic development. You often even become poorer as a result of the skyrocketing prices. If you don't believe me, ask the pensioners, they are over 700,000/pencil
Lini një Përgjigje