SHKLOV, 24 January (BelTA) – During his working trip to Shklov on 24 January, Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko decided to change the itinerary of his visit all of a sudden, BelTA has learned.
The head of state was supposed to tour only Shklov Newsprint Mill. However, after arriving there in the morning, the president said that he also wanted to visit Shklov Creamery, Linen Mill and a woodworking company.
The president caught everyone off guard, including those who arranged the visit and the company chiefs. “Tell everyone right now that the president is coming!” - people were heard saying that on the phone. Officials hastily tried to give instructions so that the next points on the itinerary could get ready for the president's visit.
While Aleksandr Lukashenko was inspecting the newsprint mill and talking to the company's team, the creamery was scrambling to refurbish its premises. “We have no idea why the president decided to visit us,” the company staff shrugged their shoulders, but held their own.
The head of state arrived at the creamery in the afternoon. He inspected several shopfloors, studied technological processes at the enterprise and then proceeded to the private company Danone Shklov located nearby.
Aleksandr Lukashenko instructed Mogilev Oblast Governor to take inventory of these two companies: it might be needed to put their resources together to increase their efficiency. “We need to weigh all pros and cons and to build a better understanding of the best solution. No way they will start going round in circle like before,” he said.
Mogilev Oblast Governor Leonid Zayats told reporters that it is yet unclear which enterprise will become a parent company. “We will carefully study the capacity of the private company and the resources it is ready to invest. Our goal is to establish a cutting-edge business that can compete successfully on other markets,” the governor noted.
The president spent about ten minutes in total at Shklov Linen Mill, however it was enough to remind the company's top managers about the previous instructions and to voice new ones. Aleksandr Lukashenko asked to pay particular attention to raw materials. In his view, if the company cannot process long-stalked flax, this raw material can be given to other companies, like Orsha Linen Mill that has everything in place to produce high-quality products.
In addition to that, some of the company's production lines were out of service. The head of state ordered to fix them as soon as possible.
While Aleksandr Lukashenko was talking to officials and the company chiefs, it became clear that there was no point in inspecting the private woodworking company, as it was not working. The company is debt-ridden and the business owners have no resources to reverse the situation. Local authorities have no idea what to do with this company, either.
The president gave an instruction to come to grips with this situation and submit a report about it to him.
