Mirziyoyev exiles ministers to poor provinces

Crack down on government officials: improve the life of the population or lose your job. Threats also to the district authorities of the capital: six months to attract foreign capital, or close your offices. "Unsatisfactory" mayor of Tashkent also replaced.

Tashkent (AsiaNews / RFE) - "70% of ministries and high-ranking officials, based in Tashkent, will now live in the provinces. I will not allow any of them to stay in Tashkent." This is what the Uzbek President Shavkat Mirzyoyev said at a government meeting on April 26th. The purpose of the move is to force ministers to experience "first hand" the difficulties that the common population experiences in everyday life.

"We see on television how people live in the province: without running water, gas, modern sewage systems, and electricity", Mirzyoyev denounced and recalled that "out of a population of 32 million, 2.5 million live in the capital, Tashkent, and the others live in the provinces ".

The president did not specify which ministries will be relocated, and for how long, but that "soon there will be a presidential decree".

Since coming to power in December 2016, Mirziyoyev has repeatedly accused government officials of being arrogant and not in touch with the reality of the country. Criticism that he addressed harshly during the meeting, also stating that the leaders of the 11 districts of the capital will have to take measures to improve the quality of life of people or lose their jobs. They have six months to attract foreign investment, or "close the offices of district governments". The meeting took place the same day that Jahongir Ortiqkhojaev, a successful businessman aged 43, was chosen as the interim mayor of the capital to replace the "unsatisfactory" Rahmonbek Usmonov, who occupied the post for six years.

• Uzbekistan
• economy
• shavkat mirzyoyev
• government
• officials
• provinces
• poverty