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Museum Employees Salary Is Still 40 GEL In Comparison to Increased Salary of District Governor to up to 2 500 GEL

January 20, 2009

Gela Mtivlishvili, Kakheti

On December 30, 2008 the President of Georgia issued a resolution that allowed increasing salaries to the representatives of municipality councils and district governors. The district authorities had tried to make profit from budget many times. The proof for this allegation can be bonuses issued on district high-ranking officials at least once in two months and sometimes even every month. In parallel to it, district governors refused employees of museums in Kakheti region to increase their salaries (currently they get 40 GEL). The authorities alleged that there were not enough funds in the budget.

Employees at the museums of Nato Vachnadze, Ivane Beritashvili, Ioseb Noneshvili and other celebrities, who are members of the union of museums in Gurjaani district, were last time refused to have their salaries increased at the beginning of January 2009. Financial-budget Service Department within the Gurjaani district administration reported that the district administration will be unable to increase salaries of museum employees in 2009 because most funds from local budget is focused on the development of district infrastructure. However, it does not impact on the salaries of district governors, chairpersons of district councils, their deputies and heads of departments. The moment the presidential resolution entered into force the authorities of Kakheti districts increased their own salaries though the income of local budget has not increased in January 2009.

Chairpersons of councils will receive 2 360 GEL from January 2009, their deputies 1 100 GEL instead of 830 GEL. Deputy district governors’ salaries were increased from 710 GEL to 900 GEL. The head of various departments in local administrations and other district administration and council authorities will have 700 GEL instead of 570 GEL; chairpersons of councils and chairpersons of council factions was increased from 450 GEL to 650;

The chairpersons of the municipality boards have their salaries increased up to 2 360 GEL; deputy chairpersons of the municipality boards and district governors will have their salaries increased from 830 GEL to 1 100 GEL. The salary of the deputy district governor will change from 710 GEL into 900 GEL. The salaries of the heads of various departments of the local authority will change from previous 570 GEL will change into 700 GEL.

In parallel with increased salaries of chairpersons of fractions in district councils the number of fractions has increased too.

“Independent Single Mandate MPs for Democratic Georgia”, the fourth fraction was created in Gurjaani district council. Tamaz Abramishvili, former chairperson of Gurjaani district council, is the head of the fraction. A salary of 650 GEL has already been assigned to him.

The representatives of territorial bodies of the district administration are due to receive 400 GEL instead of 320 GEL based on the president’s resolution. This resolution also allows junior officers to have their salaries increased at 100 GEL. However, the salaries have not increased in fact. They still receive 320 GEL but according to our information bonuses are envisaged for those officers who get low salaries.

There were no direct bonuses envisaged in Telavi district budget in 2008. However, we encountered inaccuracy in an annex # 9 of Telavi district budget for 2008 that is amendment document. This annex determines the amount of salaries and the money that will be allocated for salaries. It was indicated 327 000 GEL for salaries in budget application while in the budget it is indicated 443 000 GEL in stead. The difference is in 116 000 GEL. Similar inaccuracy was discovered in the council budget before amendments were implemented to the budget in the direction of salaries. In annex # 9 of 2008 budget (the first version of the budget) salary fund was 96 720 GEL while 105 000 GEL was indicated in the final budget. The difference is in 8 280 GEL.

Giorgi Bokeria, the director of NGO Association for Civil Development considers that in 2008 the Telavi district administration and council authorities decided not to publicize financial bonuses granted to local officials. “The law does not recognize this form of granting bonuses. Therefore, the district administration and council authorities grant bonuses secretly to the municipality administration and council employees,” said Bokeria.

The inhabitants of Kakheti region give negative evaluation to increased salaries of public officials.

Nunu Arjevanishvili, a resident of Telavi district: “Their previous salaries were higher in comparison to the activities they carried out in the region because in fact they do not do anything. People do not have water supply both in towns and villages in the region. There are no roads and other necessary conditions. Why do they have their salaries increased, for what merit?”

Ekdar Natsvlishvili, a resident of Gurjaani district: “People do nothing in district administration office except eating sunflowers and drinking coffee. The village governor does not pay attention to us at all. We do not even know who he is.”

Tamaz Zardiashvili, a resident of Gurjaani district: “How much is district governor’s salary? 2 500 GEL? Is his salary really so high? Now I understand why they try their best to get high governmental positions. No one cares what we think about the salaries of public officials. The president says that their labor should be appreciated in order to prevent them from taking bribes. What kind of labor are you talking about? People are unemployed and plots are taken away from us and governmental authorities do not do anything about it.”

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