Lukashenka Seeks New Personnel in Prisons

Why do "corrupt officials" take posts again?

Economist Barys Zhaliba and Aleh Volchek are reasoning of come-back practice of those accused of corruption.

Lukashenka invents a new Belarusian bicycle. This is how economist Barys Zhaliba characterizes the situation with pardons, release and appointment to senior positions of former government officials convicted of corruption. He believes that the personnel reserve of the incumbent in place is so low that it is needed to release new heads straight from prison, EuroBelarus reports.

- New tendency of the Belarusian government: to pardon former high officials convicted of corruption and designate for senior positions again. What is the reason for this?

- It can be described as a new Belarusian bicycle. The first sensational precedent is the release of Aliaksandr Barouski, former head of Belneftekhim, and his new position as director of MAZ.

Today this practice is still on. Deputy prosecutor general of Aliaksandr Arkhipau is released and appointed as the head of kolkhoz in Minsk district. Such policy undermines prestige of punitive institutions and the authority itself.

- Can he really be a good head of the kolkhoz?

- Deputy prosecutor general has a really good legal practice, he may make head or tail of it (perhaps, I underestimate agriculture: I used to harvest potatoes and line in Soviet times) and even make things better. But it is a malpractice; perhaps, agricultural skill pool has run low, so they have to release those in prisons.

- Does it mean that there are no high-skilled people left at large?

- This conclusion is fair. Lukashenka shuffles personnel cards that are as old as the hills: people are all the same, he is afraid of introducing new progressive people, who do not totally share his views. If it is a high-skilled specialist then let him work! Even Putin has appointed those with their own opinion. But it is a different story to us: we see milk-and-water ruck writing down Lukashenka's speeches. There are no people with arguments. The truth is sprout in discussion. This is the origin of сurrent "achievements" of Belarus.

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Aleh Volchek, leader of human rights center "Legal Assistance to Population", reasons upon origins and consequences of "new personnel policy".

- Those released and assigned to senior positions have made through the system control. As soon as the economy faces a total breakdown, they will become scapegoats. They are not qualified in spheres they are appointed to. As a result, they will not be able to turn loss-making enterprises into competitive ones. The authority has no personnel to run the economy.

All enterprises are on their knees. And here are former corrupt officials; they do not need high salaries. For being pardoned they are ready to run such enterprises almost for free. The government understands that nothing can be changed now. Let then employees haunt such directors for arrears in wages.