Vlorë municipality: KLSH audit asks dismissal of five directors and suspension of 28 staff over tenders
Status: KLSH findings reported (undated). No prosecution outcome found.
Summary
A secondary report citing an undated Shqiptarja article reports that the State Audit Institution (KLSH) asked for the dismissal of five directors of Bashkia Vlorë and the suspension of 28 other employees after finding procurement violations. A separate Shqiptarja item says a KLSH audit team had arrived at the Vlorë municipality and the regional water utility to review tender and contract files (undated). A 2022 Shqiptarja article reports, citing sources, that National Investigation Bureau officers summoned Vlorë mayor Dritan Leli over a SPAK investigation in Vlorë; the article says SPAK had not officially summoned him, and Leli said he had filed no complaint.
Key facts
- KLSH sought dismissal of five municipal directors and suspension of 28 employees over tender violations (secondary report, undated).
- Shqiptarja 22 Jul 2022: Leli said he filed no complaint and told reporters to ask SPAK; PM Rama criticised him over city cleanliness; a KLSH review was then cited (opened).
The record
Four lists kept apart on purpose: what is established, what is only alleged, what is still open, and what those concerned said.
What is proven (0)
Established by documents or official records, as stated in the research. A recorded charge or indictment proves only that the accusation was made.
Nothing recorded in this list.
What is alleged (1)
Accusations, not findings. Those accused are presumed innocent.
- AllegationTender-procedure violations in Bashkia Vlorë (KLSH finding as summarised in secondary report).
Allegations and who made them (1)
Each line is an allegation as recorded, with the person or body that made it where the record names them.
- AllegationKLSH alleges procurement-procedure violations in Vlorë municipal tenders (audit finding as summarised).
Open questions (2)
- The date of the KLSH request and the official KLSH report; not reviewed.
- Whether the suspension was carried out and whether the five directors were dismissed.
Responses (1)
Responses of the people and organisations concerned, as recorded.
- Leli (22 Jul 2022): he had not filed any complaint and told reporters to ask SPAK.
Timeline
Full timeline →Other
KLSH 'five directors / 28 staff' finding confirmed in a July 2022 article
Shqiptarja (22 Jul 2022) says that weeks earlier the State Audit Institution (KLSH) had found tender-procedure violations at Vlorë municipality and recommended dismissing five directors and suspending 28 other employees. This dates the record's 'undated' item to about mid-2022. Shqiptarja (8 Oct 2024), also opened, reports a separate KLSH audit team in the municipality over the October 2024 flooding; it does not mention five directors or 28 staff, and says the prosecution had not yet opened an investigation.
Hypotheses
Possible explanations that connect this record with other findings. They are not findings; each lists the evidence for and against.
- Source label: Unverified
A repeated 'equal treatment in tenders' charge is used across several municipalities and KESH, pointing to a common procurement pattern
The same charge wording (violating equal treatment of participants in public tenders) recurs in the Beci KESH case (2026), the Isai Kolonjë case (2026), the Kapri Pogradec case (2021), and the Balluku/Tushe-type files. Shteg's 'red flag' tenders (Kolonjë) and the Vlorë KLSH directors finding suggest a procurement-control weakness at municipal level rather than one-off misconduct. If so, the pattern may be documented in KLSH and procurement-register data across Bashkia Kolonjë, Vlorë and Shkodër.
Evidence for
- Balkanweb (17 Mar 2026) and Shqiptarja (9 Jan 2026): Beci charged under the same article as the 2026 Kolonjë charge (Balkanweb, 12 Jun 2026).
- Shteg (26 Sep 2025): Kolonjë tenders allegedly predetermined; a complaint says most Gjonç and check-dam tenders were marked 'red flag' (Balkanweb, 12 Jun 2026).
- KLSH review of Vlorë requested dismissal of five directors (undated, secondary report).
Evidence against
- The Kapri case (acquitted, upheld 2024) shows the same charge did not result in conviction; courts have not yet found any of the 2026 tender cases proven.
- The municipalities, tenders and officials are different; no documented common company, consultant or political sponsor across them was found in the sources opened.
- The charge is standard for tender cases in Albania and may reflect how prosecutors qualify many procurement offences rather than a coordinated scheme.
Sources for this record
Every source the research cites for this record, grouped by its source label. 2 sources.
Source label: Under investigationUnder investigation · 2 sources
- Publisher
- Shqiptarja.com
- Date
- 22 Jul 2022
- Publisher
- Shqiptarja.com
- Date
- 8 Oct 2024