.
The government announced that is, at last, to establish two Under Secretariats – a wash-down from the initial plan of six Deputy Ministries – with the two new departments being independent and reporting directly to the President.
More than three years ago, in one of his pre-election pledges, President Anastasiades had told a gathering of business groups that he would create six Deputy Ministries to relieve the burden from the current Cabinet members, some of whom have multiple and demanding portfolios, and aimed to make the government a more streamlined machine, earning the applause of his public and the title of being a pro-business president. The six new posts, he told his audience, would have equal powers with the rest of the Ministers, but no vote in the Cabinet.
Despite the long delay, we are pleased that at least two of the six have finally materialised – an Undersecretary for Shipping and an Undersecretary for Tourism.
In the first case, it was a natural development, with the efficient Department of Merchant Shipping, already a division of the Ministry of Transport, headed for a smooth transition and upgrade, giving the maritime sector an exclusive public official with executive powers. In effect, nothing will change as regards staff numbers, budgets and regulating the shipping industry, but will only improve.
In the second case, instead of upgrading the Cyprus Tourism Organisation from a semi-government body to a fully independent authority, the government has decided to move in the opposite direction, by transforming it into a fully-fledged public service, guaranteeing a slow-down in efficiencies and ensuring government jobs for the department’s staff.
Handling what some claim to be the most important contributor to national wealth, the Undersecretary for Tourism will be a rigid office, maintaining the 7.30-2.30 schedule and resorting to become a reactive department, instead of a pro-active service, challenging world markets and ensuring a healthy growth rate for the holiday and leisure sector.
Coincidentally, the Employers and Industrialists Federation had come out with a stern warning to the government to contain its payroll spending (which will now expand), while the other employer group, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, has chosen to remain silent.
So much for reforms and efficiencies…
