Parties Promise a Smaller Government

The outgoing Kosovo government, led by Ramush Haradinaj, is one of the largest governments in Europe, as it consists of a total of 21 ministers, five deputy prime ministers, as well as about 80 deputy ministers.

Such a large government no longer envisions any of the political subjects, including parties that are in the ruling coalition.

The Democratic Party of Kosovo has pledged that the maximum number of ministries in the Government of Kosovo should be 14, eventually 15 ministries. Even the coalition between the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo and the Social Democrat Party has pledged that the future government should not have more than 15 ministries. No more than 15 ministries have also seen the Social Democrat Initiative coalition, the New Kosovo Alliance and the Justice Party in its programme.

The Vetevendosje Movement has promised it will insist that the Kosovo government has no more than 12 ministries. The Democratic League of Kosovo, in the governing programme, is also scheduled for the government to consist of 12 ministries.

Civil society representatives say the number of ministries would have to be adjusted to the Law for Government. As for political parties' promises of reducing the number of ministries, they say their promises may even not be realised and remain only as election campaigns.

The director of the non-governmental organisation “; arise”, Arton Demhasey, tells Radio Europe that if political parties promise to reduce the number of ministries really have, they could do so once they get the trust of citizens to lead with the government in the next mandate.

“Taking into account the current large government, which had a large number of ministers and deputy ministers, is believing that political parties will reflect on this and will have the tendency to cut the next cabinet, whoever creates the” government.

But also the Government Bill. The best way is for that bill to be passed by the government as soon as possible in the next legislature in the Assembly and to be considered”, Demhaja says.

The regulation of the number of ministries through the law, according to Demhasey, would prevent coalitions or political parties from playing later with the number of ministries according to their wishes.

Civil society had consistently estimated that the country has governments with more ministries than it needs the executive of a small country, such as Kosovo. It was also estimated that increased government positions cost the state budget up to threem euros annually.

Political affairs analyst Armend Muja, speaking of Radio Free Europe, says the only way to create a smaller government is to have a political transformation in Kosovo.

“in the absence of a political transformation in Kosovo, political parties' statements about reducing the government are unstable and incredible as a result. The reason is that all parties have had the chance to testify to their views on the size of the government, but it has turned out to be completely different, disfigured by both horizontal enlargement and their deepening with unnecessary deputy ministers”, Muja says.

In European Union countries, Muja adds, there is a minister and a deputy minister, and there is no more than 14 ministries, but this does not happen in Kosovo despite what is a small country.

Kosovo's “in Kosovo has expanded to give each political party a share in power that has in itself made it difficult, fragmented economic and social sectors to the extent that there is no coherence in government decision”, Muja adds.

Early parliamentary elections in Kosovo will be held on 6 October. From the voting process, the new composition of the Kosovo Assembly is expected to be resolved, from which, after which, the winning party or coalition will receive the mandate for forming Kosovo's next government.