Constitutional deadline to form Kosovo Assembly lapsed; continuation scheduled for today

The Kosovo Assembly announced that the continuation of its constitutive session will be held today, despite a constitutional deadline that expired at midnight yesterday.

Opposition party and legal experts call the move a breach of the constitution

The Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), the main opposition force, immediately criticised the decision and said the Vetevendosje movement had refused to respect a deadline set by the Constitutional Court to constitute the Assembly within 30 days of confirmation of the election results.

PDK warned it would not stand aside. In a statement the party said the Constitutional Court clearly determined that the Assembly must be constituted within 30 days of the confirmation of the results and that "That deadline expires tonight. Instead of fulfilling this constitutional obligation, the parliamentary majority decided to ignore the decision of the Constitutional Court and, through the eldest MP who chairs the constitutive session, schedule its continuation for tomorrow, after the deadline has passed." PDK described the move as a dangerous precedent for the rule of law.

PDK further accused Vetevendosje leader Albin Kurti of putting party interests ahead of the state: "Unfortunately, once again Albin Kurti put the party will above the Constitution of the Republic and party interest above the state interest. It is sad that the political subject that received the citizens' trust to form new institutions holds the Republic of Kosovo hostage to its own political calculations, delaying their formation and creating constitutional uncertainty," the party said, adding that "No one can place themselves above the Constitution, least of all those obliged to protect and implement it."

Eugen Cakoli of the Kosovo Democratic Institute (KDI) said scheduling the continuation for tomorrow at 11:00 amounts to an open violation of the Constitution and urged MPs to apply to the Constitutional Court for an interim measure to stop the session. He argued that the presiding MP Avni Dehari had an obligation to set the continuation within the day so the procedure would conclude inside the constitutional deadline.

Cakoli wrote on Facebook that "the 48-hour pause is a procedural limit and applies exclusively within the constitutional timeframe. By scheduling the continuation after the expiry of the deadline, and Vetevendosje by not using its exclusive right within 30 days to nominate a candidate, MPs were prevented from exercising their constitutional rights and duties." He called for at least ten MPs to file a challenge with the Constitutional Court immediately after midnight, contesting the decision to set the session for after the constitutional deadline and the inaction on 6 and 7 August, and requested an interim injunction to stop the session set for today at 11:00.

Photo: press material from the event