Regional Positions Filled According to the Will of the Governor

Regional Positions Filled According to the Will of the Governor

Zaza Gorozia, the President’s Representative and Governor, reappointed all those employees that had previously been dismissed from the Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti Regional Administration to their previous positions. This marked the end of the staff reorganization process that was announced two months earlier.

All of the employees had been fired as a result of the reorganization, despite the fact they expected the reorganization to only be a formality. The supporters of the staff reforms had many questions about the subsequent massive reappointment of staff.  As well as the Governor tampering with the reorganization process, he also tried manipulate the hiring process by adding unnecessary competencies for jobs, such as knowledge of English.

A vacancy announced a week ago for new staff for the Information Service was advertised as: “Specialist for Public and Media Services”. The position did not entail having any contact with the media or the public. The ‘specialist’ was however required to know English. This is significant because as was explained to us in the region, the media service is open to non-specialists, even mechanics.

Head of the Information Service, Lali Gelenava noted in the conversation she had with us that she did not have to know English when she had was appointed to that position (though she forgets that the reorganization process had not been launched at that time). She is now helping applicants in an effort to find responsible people to fill the vacancy, but so far her efforts have been in vain.

One of the Governors’s High Ranking Officials, who wants to stay anonymous to the public, believes that their ‘Leader’ (meaning Zaza Gorozia, the Governor), tries to tailor positions to the personal abilities of his acquaintances: “Our ‘Leader’ insists on staff knowing English - his own secretary and other staff cannot speak the language – although they should know it. It is not fair to have such high demands on the lower positions. But it is up to them”.

Our attempts to get in touch by phone with the Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti Governor, Zaza Gorozia, failed. He is not picking up the receiver in his room (we were informed later, it does not working for incoming calls) and he never answers ‘unknown’ incoming calls on his mobile. It should be observed that the President’s instruction to answer all received calls on mobiles has already lost its impact on officials and it is apparently no longer valid.

In a week’s time it will be clear who has been appointed to the position and any intelligent person will be able to see that this was a translator’s job all along and that unemployed journalists expectations have been unfairly raised.

   
Maia Ghibeladze from Zugdidi