Vacancies in two key investigative bodies should be resolved this summer. The following Wednesday is the last day when you can apply for the position of the Chief of the State Police. We have unofficial information that no valid applications have been received at this time. The requirement of Minister Sands Ģirģens to use a lie detector in the selection of a candidate has been much criticized and may lead to a competition without a result. Recently, the selection of another ministry headed by KPV LV for the position of the Chairman of the Competition Council, which is important for the national economy, also failed, reports “Nekā personīga”.
The VP Criminal Investigation Board has been without management for almost a year. Internal competition announced for the position The Competition Council monitors and protects competition in all sectors of the economy. Currently, its balance sheet includes the evaluation of the “Clean Riga” waste contract related to Andris Skele and the builders’ cartel case, where millions of fines may have to be paid to the sharks of this business. An investigation is also underway against a subsidiary of the Latvian Railway for possible restriction of competition in the freight transport services market. Its powers have increased since this year – the council will also have to eliminate distortions of competition caused by the state and local governments.
However, after the departure of the previous leader Skaidrīte Abrama, the first attempt to find a reputable leader for this small but important institution for the economy failed. The selection rules were drawn up by the then Ministry of Economy, headed by Ralph Nemiro. Candidates were not required to have experience in competition law, but five years of continuous management experience were required. Raivis Kronbergs, State Secretary of the Ministry of Justice, met such criteria. Nemiro does not hide, he addressed Kronberg to participate in the competition. “He’s a good professional, I think, and if he had chosen to go, congratulations, he would have been a good candidate. But that he hasn’t chosen, it’s every private choice. No one can be forced,” Nemiro points out.
The course of the competition was criticized as being too politicized. And although the authors of the statute deny that it was written for one particular person, the activity was low. The Secretary of State of the Ministry of Justice, who is unfamiliar with competition law, changed his mind at the last minute and did not apply for the competition. Of the 12 candidates, none passed the selection.
The selection has now been re-announced and the requirements have been relaxed. Candidates will also benefit from three years of management experience. And a master’s degree will no longer be required. Candidates can apply until July 6.
The recruitment company “Euro Personals”, which was previously paid 700 euros for market research, is no longer attracted to the repeated competition. The head of the commission states that all possible channels will be used in order to find a good leader for the Competition Council in this competition. But the initiative of the Minister of Economics in addressing his candidates would be seen by Kitskowski as a negative rather than a positive aspect.
Another investigative body, which has been without a full-fledged head for a long time and which is also under the supervision of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, is the State Police.
The competition was announced on March 10, two days before the announcement of the emergency situation. However, Covid is not the main reason for the prolongation of the tender and the unforeseen outcome. The Minister of the Interior Sandis Ģirģens has ensured that the candidates will be examined with a polygraph or lie detector. The questions will be drawn up by the Minister himself, the answers of the candidates will not be publicly available and the consequences of failing the test may be decisive.
“If a person has obvious risks that he or she cannot pass this polygraph’s examination, there is one option – not to apply and even better – to leave the service,” Girgen points out.
Expertise of this device in Latvia is used to ask questions to those involved in criminal proceedings. However, the polygraph has not been used before in the selection of police officers and the requirement for a lie detector is one of the typical ideas of kpv lv without special justification. And the course of the competition so far raises the question of whether such a test will be included in the selection at all.
Only those in the service can apply for this position. You can run from among senior or senior officers. And must have worked in the system of the Ministry of the Interior for at least 10 years.
More than personally, it is unofficially known that until the end of the competition on July 1, the number of applications is insignificant, moreover, the applicant does not meet the requirements at all.
One of the most realistic candidates in this competition could be Andrejs Grišins, who has been leading the police since Inta Ķuža’s departure. Unlike other potential candidates, the polygraph would not influence Grishin’s choice to take part in the competition. However, this may be affected by suspicions of fraudulent procurement of police uniforms. The Internal Security Bureau has recently launched an investigation into them. There are no direct suspicions against Grishin, but he has not suspended the two deputy chiefs involved in the case for the duration of the investigation.
Andrejs Grišins, Acting Chief of the State Police: “I understand the situation currently being investigated by the IDB, and I look forward to a quick decision on the part of the investigators to put everything on the shelves. Therefore, my current action is “Just if we have other information, I will act immediately. But are we talking about whether this event will affect my personal choice to run for the post of national police chief?
Even if Grishin applied for the competition and passed the selection, problems could arise with his approval by the government. Although this has not yet been decided by the national association, some members of the association have objected to Grishin as head of the State Police.
If the competition ends without a result, it is possible that Ģirens will try again to make changes in the law so that prosecutors, judges, military police and SRS employees can also apply for police leadership. At one time, the New Conservative Party and the New Unity were against this proposal.
A year ago, Jānis Lazdiņš, the head of the Criminal Investigation Board, was forced to resign due to health problems. All this time, this unit is also without a head. The police do not disclose when an internal competition has been announced for this position, which could be applied for by officials with special service ranks, potential candidates have been selected and evaluated, and a decision on the most suitable candidate for the position will be made in the near future.
Leaving the state police without leadership for a long time means not only stagnation. For almost a year, the Criminal Investigation Board has been in charge of investigating particularly serious crimes. We were informed by the police that an internal competition has now been announced for this position, however, prolonged ignorance of the highest position of police management may also affect it.
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