MINSK, 25 January (BelTA) – Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko has told Belarus’ new Healthcare Minister Aleksandr Khodzhayev to put an end to cronyism at the Healthcare Ministry, BelTA has learned.
Aleksandr Lukashenko noted that he carefully studied the candidacy of Aleksandr Khodzhayev, because a healthcare minister is not an ordinary position. “I inquired about your past and present. I have not seen any problems with you. I think that you are capable of heading up the ministry. But we will need to have a look at the ministry itself and its staff. This will be your first task. In line with an established tradition, if anything happens, the minister gets all the flak. Indeed, the minister should take the flak. But others should also share the responsibility for the situation, for the state of affairs. This pertains to deputies, heads of departments, directorates, and so on. Pay attention to this,” the president said.
“These should be professionals devoted to their work and the state. This is the most important thing. And I really count on it. I know that you do not belong to any clan. The Healthcare Ministry has the so-called family dynasties, and clans, and so on, all kinds of things... This should stop. I really hope that you will put an end to this. A dedicated person, a professional, a statesman. This person should not just idle away their time and look at a neighboring country thinking how to get there as soon as possible for better financial opportunities or something else. We have already started to deal with it,” the head of state said.
“While some of our self-exiled opposition members are living in the West, their relatives here keep doing what they did before. Just quietly. We see this and are responding. The situation is not easy. We cannot lose the country. Belarus must be a sovereign, independent state that does not create problems for neighbors. And this is a country where our children, grandchildren should live,” the Belarusian leader emphasized.
“You should keep this in mind while making appointments, hiring people to work at the ministry and so on. Your big advantage is that you are free from pressure and don’t have obligations to some people,” the Belarusian leader noted.
