Justina Shiroka-Pula was elected president of the Republic of Kosovo with 81 votes in the Assembly and, after the election, took the oath before the deputies. 84 deputies participated in the vote. Shiroka-Pula received 81 votes, deputy Eliza Hoxha received one vote, while two deputies abstained. Academician Justina Shiroka-Pula was proposed for president by Prime Minister Albin Kurti. She is currently the president of the Academy of Sciences and Arts of Kosovo (ASHAK), while earlier she also served as Minister of Energy and Mines.
After the election, Shiroka-Pula took the oath before the deputies and officially assumed the office of the president of the Republic of Kosovo. In her speech after the oath, she said that she accepts the task with great honor and full responsibility, stressing that the presidential mandate does not belong to just one person, but to all the citizens and institutions of the country. She vowed to be the president of all citizens, regardless of political, ethnic or social affiliation.
“This mandate does not belong to just one person. It belongs to our citizens, our institutions and the state for which many generations sacrificed. I will be the president of all citizens, without political, ethnic or social distinction. I will work for unity, justice, development and strengthening of our institutions”she declared.
Shiroka-Pula emphasized that Kosovo should continue its path as a democratic and safe state, with a clear Euro-Atlantic orientation and strong relations with allies. She also pledged to protect the Constitution and the interest of the Republic of Kosovo.
“Kosovo must move forward as a democratic, safe state, with a clear Euro-Atlantic orientation and strong friendship with our allies. I will protect the Constitution, the interest of the Republic and the dignity of our citizens. I believe in Kosovo, I believe in its people and I believe that together we can build a better future for the generations to come. May God bless the Republic of Kosovo!”, she said.
Who is Justina Shiroka-Pula?
Justina Shiroka-Pula was born in 1953 in Pristina, where she completed primary and secondary education. In 1976, he graduated from the Faculty of Economics of the University of Pristina. He continued his postgraduate studies in the field of theory and policy of economic development at the Faculty of Economic Sciences in Zagreb, where he graduated in 1984.
He started his academic career in 1978 at the Faculty of Economics of the University of Pristina, initially as an assistant in the course “Operational Research”. During her academic career she went through the levels of advancement and in 2004 she was elected full professor. During her engagement at the University of Pristina, Shiroka-Pula served as the head of the Department of Management and Informatics, a member of the Senate of the University of Pristina and a member of the University’s Board of Directors. She has also attended studies, postdoctoral programs and academic training abroad, including the University of Linz in Austria and the University of Arizona in the United States of America.
