Summary
Taulant Balla (born 12 August 1977) is an Albanian Socialist Party politician and Member of Parliament (MP) for Librazhd. He was first elected MP in the 2005 general election. He has held the offices of General Secretary and Parliamentary group leader of the Socialist Party. Currently he is the Minister of Interior.
Taulant Balla MP | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Minister of Internal Affairs | |
| Assumed office 8 July 2023 | |
| President | Bajram Begaj |
| Prime Minister | Edi Rama |
| Preceded by | Bledar Çuçi |
| Member of Parliament | |
| Assumed office 25 June 2017 | |
| Prime Minister | Edi Rama |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 12 August 1977 Lunik, Librazhd, Albania |
| Political party | Socialist Party |
| Alma mater | Alexandru Ioan Cuza University |
| Signature |  |
Political career edit
Political activities edit
He was first elected MP in the 2005 general election and then for two other legislatures successively as a member of the parliamentary group of the Socialist Party.[1][2]
He is the political leader for the Socialist Party in Fier.[3]
In 2020, Balla proposed a measure to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition of anti-Semitism and promise to fight anti-Jewish prejudice.[4] The measure was accepted unanimously by the Parliament of Albania, and Albania became the first Muslim country to formally adopt the definition.[4]
Plagiarism assertion edit
In October 2018, many Albanian public figures and politicians were alleged to have been part of a plagiarism scandal, involving their Masters and Ph.D. theses. The assertions were begun by Taulant Muka, a young epidemiologist educated in the Netherlands.[5] The assertions sparked nationwide protests from students of public universities, leading to a vetting for all academic titles held by public figures, state officials, and politicians. The PhD thesis of Balla, entitled The Reform of Decision-Making System in the European Union, supervised by Professor George Poede at Alexandru Ioan Cuza University in Iaşi, Romania, was named in the scandal.[6][7] In 2019, following an accusation of plagiarism, the university forwarded the charge to the consultative body of the ministry of national education that investigates such accusations.[8][9]
Personal life edit
Balla is married to Iris Pekmezi and has two children, a boy, Robin and a girl, Melani. Balla is a supporter of German football club Bayern Munich.[10]
References edit
- ^ "Taulant Balla overview". ps.al. Socialist Party of Albania.
- ^ "List of deputies by counties" (PDF). parlament.al. Parliament of Albania.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Taulant Balla rumored as Minister of Interior after Lleshaj: My name has been mentioned for 7 years". tiranapost.net.
- ^ a b "Albania becomes first Muslim country to adopt anti-Semitism definition". Times of Israel.
- ^ Exit.al (25 December 2018). "Massive plagiarism scandal hits Albanian officials". Retrieved 30 December 2018.
- ^ "The reform of decision-making system in the European Union" (PDF). UAIC PhD thesis database. Alexandru Ioan Cuza University. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
- ^ "Taulant Balla is charged with plagiarism - Shqipëria". Anabel Magazine. 19 December 2018. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
- ^ "Alexandru Ioan Cuza University Investigates Plagiarism of Taulant Balla". February 5, 2019.
- ^ "Sesizare-nr" (PDF). CNATDCU. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
- ^ "FOTOLAJM/ Bajerni bën dopietë në Gjermani, ja si feston Taulant Balla me të birin" [Bayern makes doube in Germany, here's how Taulant Balla celebrates with his son] (in Albanian). Panorama Sport. 25 May 2019. Retrieved 26 May 2019.
External links edit
- Parliament of Albania Official Website
- Socialist Party of Albania Official Website