The paper’s editor-in-chief Agron Bajrami writes that most of the promises made in the election campaign were of economic and social nature while political issues, like the north or dialogue with Serbia, were pushed to the margins of discussions. Even the EU integration was viewed more from the administrative and economic aspect as if everything depended on fulfillment of technical criteria and the will of the government in Pristina. There was little discussion on the political context of the process, namely the non-recognition of Kosovo’s independence by five EU member states without which Kosovo cannot hope to get closer to the EU as a country.

However, the question is not about which promise we prefer the most but rather, the credibility of the person and the one making it. “And when it comes to credibility, the decision is not all that difficult. One can easily make the distinction between those who promise to fulfill their promises and those who make the promises only to win votes”, writes Bajrami.

If everyone agrees Kosovo needs changes, it is a logical conclusion that the current ruling party has no credibility to promise these changes. Another aspect that needs to be weighed in when it comes to election promises is their quality. In a country like Kosovo where unemployment is 40 percent, to promise creation of 200,000 jobs over a four-year period is nonsense, says Bajrami. What should also be taken into account is the expertise and the local businessmen promising employment and economic development, in Bajrami’s view, are not credible.

The most important aspect of election promises is commitment to the rule of law. Corruption, organised crime, economic stagnation and lack of investments are all related to rule of law and without it in place no progress can be made in any field.

“Who forgets the past is doomed to repeat it”, quotes Bajrami the saying and interprets it in, as he says, the Kosovo context: “If we forget the unfulfilled promises of past elections and we forget mistakes of our previous elected representatives, everything will be repeated”.