Rama bowed before the coffin, where a wreath of white flowers had been placed, and then greeted the relatives of the late former chairman.
In his speech, Rama said that although he had known and met Servet Pëllumbi only occasionally, his initial antipathy toward him and the approaches Pëllumbi represented later turned into admiration and sympathy for both the man and the values he conveyed.
“I would like to express my condolences to the professor’s entire family. At the same time, I want to thank Namik for generously sharing the responsibility of speaking about the professor. I felt relieved because I was completely unable to prepare a speech the way a student should prepare before a professor.
I knew him only a little and from a distance, but I want to recall that my relationship with him was a typical relationship of mutual antipathy from afar, followed later by mutual sympathy up close. For years, the professor represented everything I did not sympathize with — conservative, Soviet-minded, and all the labels attached to him whenever criticism and accusations were directed at him.
One of the most valuable lessons of my journey has been confronting the reality of a person beyond public labels and stereotypes.
I came to know a very progressive man, supportive of anyone trying to do something differently, and someone who stood by me during difficult moments. Unexpectedly, he would appear on my phone screen sending encouraging messages and helping me see that beyond difficult moments, there were people observing situations calmly and thoughtfully.
When Beni wrote to me that the professor had passed away, it came as a shock because somehow I had become used to the idea that he walked every day, and it felt predetermined that he would continue walking forever. In the few times I met him, I always found him in good form and always eager to discuss topics close to his heart.
When a person passes away, everything connected to them comes closer. Even when the closeness created by the moment fades with time, the professor will remain a reference point in the history of change and changing eras. Undoubtedly, he will remain a point of reference for those who wish to understand the dynamics and history of the Socialist Party.
What is even more important from my perspective is the memory he leaves behind. I believe that everyone who knew him, whether openly or silently, remembers and will remember him as a good man, an honest man, a wise man, and above all, a warm-hearted man.
And this is how I hope he will always be remembered — not only by his sons, but also by his grandchildren and all his relatives — while expressing my sorrow and wishing that he may rest peacefully, as he earned through his life and the memory he leaves behind,” Prime Minister Rama said.
