Constituent Assembly hearing: What if the head speaker isn't elected?

The Constitutional House session has been called by Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani on 1 April.

According to the Kosovo Assembly Rule, the work of the constitutional session -- until the election of the Speaker of the Parliament -- is led by the oldest deputy, assisted by the youngest MP.

In the current case, the session will be conducted by the oldest MP, Avni Dehari, from the Vetevendosje Movement and the newest MP, Sala Jashari from the Democratic Party of Kosovo.

At the Constituve session, no debate will be made, but the agenda will begin with the appointment of an MP from political subjects represented in the Assembly for the Interim and Mandas Interim Verification Commission, reports Radio Free EuropeFollow Periscope.

After verifying the validity of MPs' mandates, as well as the quorum at the constitutional session, MPs will take the solemn oath.

Later, the Assembly will proceed with the election of the president of this legislature, which belongs to the Vetevendosje Movement, as a party that has the largest number of MPs.

The votes of at least 61 MPs are necessary for the election of the Speaker of the Parliament.

The election of the Speaker and Vice Chairmans of the Parliament will end the constitution of the Kosovo legislature.

Attitudes of Political Subjects

So far, the Vetevendosje Movement, which as the winning election party has secured 48 seats in the Assembly, has not yet revealed its nominated name for the post of chief parliament, nor if it has managed to secure votes necessary for his election.

Prime Minister Albin Kurti's LVV, had earlier declared that it preferred to establish new institutions with non-Serb communities, but has recently acknowledged that it needs co-operation even with Albanian parties that have won seats in the Assembly.

From this party, they have stressed that they need two more votes to reach the 61st vote.

Representatives of the Democratic Party of Kosovo, which has secured 24 seats in the Assembly, have suggested that its deputies would not participate in the vote for the new prime minister during the constitutional session of the Parliament, without a <x0-> sustainable solution for Kosovo”.

The Democratic League of Kosovo, which has 20 deputies in the Assembly, has not specified whether to vote on Vetevendosje Movement's proposal for the chief parliament, but has said that any person who does not have 61 votes should not become head of the Kosovo Assembly.

From the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo, which along with its partner in the coalition, the Social Democrat Initiative has eight deputies in the Assembly, have stressed that “in principle will vote for the new prime minister”, proposed by the winning election party, the Vetevendosje Movement.

Political subjects of non-US communities have a guarantee of 20 seats in the Assembly 10 for non-Serb and 10 Serb parties.

Of the parties of non-Serb communities, according to New Democratic Initiative of Kosovo Chairman Elbert Krasniqi, seven votes have been secured for the constitution of the new Assembly and a government led by the Vetevendosje Movement.

If elected chairman of the Assembly, it will also be prosecuted by the election of deputy mayors, who will be from the three Albanian opposition parties and one deputy chairman from the non-Serb minority communities and the Serb community.

Donika Emine of the Balkan Policy Adviser Group in an interview for Radio Free Europe said that despite positions expressed by opposition parties, they should not block the election of the Speaker of the Assembly, adding that this would bring further consequences.

Despite the dilemmas, this procedure step should not be blocked. Failure to elect the prime minister would have serious political consequences and increase the risk of new elections a scenario that may not bring real change to political composition, but would produce political instability for the country”, she said.

Asked whether the country is in danger of entering a political and institutional deadlock, Emini recalled that Kosovo had gone through a situation years ago when for six months it had been without Government, because it could not be voted for the chief parliament.

“This is a testing moment for the political class ) a test to show whether it is willing to manage the country's responsible differences and interest”, Amyn said.

What if the head speaker isn't elected?

The deputy mayors' election, which would complete the constitution, will be impossible, if the election of the chief parliament fails, due to the failure of a name by the winning party or for any other reason.

Adjusting the Assembly stresses that if the session is aborted, the “cuts could not be longer than 48 hours”.

From the Kosovo Democratic Institute (KDI) clarified for Radio Free Europe that the 48-hour restriction for the break-up of the constitutional session is intended to ensure the continued and functionality of the Convention Constitution.

“This deadline represents maximum time limit, within which a session could be interrupted or suspended, before the same resumes”, KDI says.

In practical terms, this means that if the March 15th session does not have the Convention under way, then it should be interrupted, but a young woman should be kept at the same time by Thursday.

Such a 48-hour deadline is worth any interruption.

Disrespecting this term “constitutes procedural violations and can be used as the basis for challenging the issue, even in the Constitutional Court, which could potentially require interpretation of the procrastination or political impasse of the constitution constitutionalised”, clear from KDI.

According to Eugen Cakoli from KDI, there is another scenario, when some LVV and minority deputies who are part of the government in office do not resign from executive positions.

As Cakoli wrote on Facebook, in such a scenario, the opposition could refuse to vote on the commission's report on the validity of mandates, opposing mandates of those still in government office. Without the approval of this report, the oath of MPs and the Parliament could not be taken.

This is a legal-based procedure jam, putting pressure on members of the cabinet to resign to enable the institution. However, neither does this scenario Conveniate the opposition, since, in turn, the consumption of deadlines for the winning party's effort to form institutions” does not begin, Cakoli wrote.

However, if at Monday's session, the chairman of the Parliament and vice-presidents is elected, as well as the constitutionalisation of the legislature, then the way for the process of forming Kosovo's new government opens.