That is what this man, Deputy Illir Beqai, Socialist Party, proposed two days ago. As a financial ‘relief measure’ during Covid-19.

“From May 1, 2020 to December 31, 2020, all employees of the public sector, institutions and enterprises, central and local, dependent and independent, to be paid with 90% of their normal salary. But not less than the national minimum wage, excluding those on the war front line. The average monthly salary in the public sector is 63,000 ALL ($550). There are about 172 thousand employees.
Thus, we create a fund of about 8.7 billion ALL (4.5 billion budget employees and 4.2 billion non-budget employees). Likewise, each additional pension supplement (senior civil servant, military serviceman, professor, etc.) for the remaining eight months of the year, will receive 75% of their monthly installment as of April 2020 “.

If that wasn’t bad enough for the current employees, who are averaging a $550 monthly salary, he wants to reduce the pensions retirees who are collecting a ‘supplementary’ amount in their pensions, by 25%.

The average pension in Albania ranges between 8,000-20,000ALL (roughly $60-$180). The so-called ‘supplementary’ pension is an additional $50, more or less, to those people in the category of: veterans, professors, etc.

What they failed to report is that also in this category are retirees who were persecuted during communism and are receiving the ‘supplemental’ income for their back-breaking labor in: cement factories, cotton and agricultural fields and mines, while they were living in concentration camps, suffering daily from malnutrition and deprivation of basic human rights . This category was conveniently omitted from the article, but it’s not surprising as anything that has to do with the truth of  the communist regime and suffering of the people for almost 50 years wants to be forgotten and erased from Albania’s history.

March 24 – The European Union pledged 50 million euros ($54 million) to help Albania fight the Coronavirus outbreak and recover its economy.

April 10 – The IMF Approved $190.5 Million Emergency Support to Albania to Combat COVID-19 and the November 2019 earthquake emergency.

April 18 – The U.S. has pledged $1.2 million dollars to assist Albania in the fight against Covid-19.

To date a total of $241.7 Million Dollars has been pledged to assist Albania in this fight.

For the Earthquake relief the following was pledged:

December 4, 2019 – The EU has pledged €15 million in relief funding.

February 18 – International donors on Monday (17 February) pledged €1.15 billion to help Albania recover from a powerful earthquake.

To date people are still homeless and waiting for forever homes!

That a member of  Parliament dares to suggest stealing what few crumbs they are giving their pensioners is abhorrent! Perhaps they should first take a look at their own pockets which have been filling with riches for the last 29 years! How dare he even make such a suggestion!