Kib-Tek and union chief embroiled in nepotism controversy (Updated)

Controversy has surrounded the north’s electricity authority (Kib-Tek) and its workers’ trade union (El-Sen)’s leader Caglayan Cesurer regarding an alleged nepotism scandal.

According to reports, Kib-Tek hired 16 people on Wednesday night, none of whom had sat the normal requisite entrance examinations, bringing the total number of Kib-Tek employees up to 157.

The same reports suggested that the appointments had taken place upon the request of Caglayan Cesurer.

Fresh reports which surfaced later on Thursday alleged that Cesurer’s son was among the list of names of people who were due to start work the same day in Kyrenia.

After these allegations surfaced, El-Sen’s management called on Cesurer to either resign or call an extraordinary general assembly. They also announced that a union meeting would be held on Thursday with Cesurer and the alleged scandal the only item on the agenda.

Cesurer himself flatly denied the accusations in a televised interview.

However chairman of Kib-Tek’s board of directors, Huseyin Pasha, indicated in an interview with Yeni Duzen that Cesurer’s son had in fact been hired by Kib-Tek, if only on a temporary basis.

He said “there is no examination required for temporary work. 200 people had been hired before, all without examinations … No matter which government wishes for that to change, these hires are not the first, nor are will they be the last. [Kib-Tek] needs personnel, everyone has to see this”.

“If he is the son of the union leader, does he not have the right to work? Does this mean the children of prime ministers, ministers, MPs, or undersecretaries cannot work in any government departments today?”, he added.

He said, “besides, I don’t know him, but this is someone who is equipped to work for [Kib-Tek]. He was technical staff, a child with knowledge, and he was well-equipped”.

As the controversy reached fever pitch, ‘parliamentary’ opposition leader and former ‘prime minister’ Tufan Erhurman said many departments are “in need of qualified civil servants” but are wasting money on salaries and personnel expenses for “inefficient services”.

Erhurman said agreements signed with Turkey negatively impact the financial efficiency of the north’s public sector, saying “no one should be under the illusion that financial discipline will be achieved in the public sector with protocols signed with the Republic of Turkey.”

Implicating current ‘prime minister’ Unal Ustel in the scandal, he said “Mr Ustel is supposedly going to carry the TRNC ti the place it deserves with this stable government. He obviously thinks this is what the Turkish Cypriot people deserve”.

“The ballot box is close. Everyone will see what this mentality damaged by lies, plundering, a lack of will or foresight, incompetence, and ignorance deserves”, he added.