Another battle for control of important state institutions appears to be taking place behind the scenes, this time within the prison system.
According to media sources, the Minister of Justice Toni Gogu has requested the dismissal of the General Director of Prisons, Adriatik Kupi, just a few months after Gogu himself appointed him to this post.
Instead of Kup, according to the same sources, the appointment of a woman who is considered close and trusted to Belinda Balluku is being discussed.
If the move materializes, it would be another stark change in an extremely sensitive institution.
Thus, in addition to the Police, Belinda Balluku will control the General Directorate of Prisons, the structure that administers the entire penitentiary system and, consequently, the conditions, transfers and regime of persons deprived of their liberty.
Adriatik Kupi was appointed General Director of Prisons on April 1, 2026, after the departure of Klevis Qose. The day after, Toni Gogu presented it publicly stating that the change was made to “strengthen the system” and increase discipline.
So the question is straightforward: what has happened in just six months that the minister who appointed Kupi now wants to remove him?
The Directorate of Prisons is not a routine administrative directorate. Penitentiary institutions house high-profile convicted and pre-detained persons, including former officials, businessmen and persons included in SPAK files.
For this reason, any appointment at the head of the system must be protected from the suspicion that it is being done for political interests or to favor or aggravate the position of certain persons.
If Kupi is replaced by a person politically connected to Belinda Balluk, political control over prisons would be a much more serious precedent than control over a directorate of tenders or a public enterprise.
The Director of Prisons administers a system where the state exercises the most extreme form of power over the individual, the deprivation of liberty.
Precisely for this reason, any suspicion that the management of this institution by people from Balluk can be used to exert pressure on opponents, political enemies or persons who are in conflict with a certain center of power should be investigated and clarified, not treated as an ordinary rotation of directors.
If Toni Gogu removes Adriatik Kupi only six months after appointing him, the minister must explain publicly why he is removing him and why the person who will replace him is the most suitable choice.
Because in the prison system it is not enough to know who has the keys. You also need to know who is deciding who gets the keys.
