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Positions can be bought: Medvedev

Dmitry Medvedev.

Moscow: Russian President Dmitry Medvedev who has declared anti-corruption combat as his main agenda in the domestic policy has acknowledged that high government posts are sometimes sold for money.

“Sometimes decisions about filling positions are made on the basis of acquaintance, personal allegiance or, even worse, for money — that is, offices can be bought,” Mr. Medvedev said in televised comments on Wednesday. “Russia is a democracy, not a medieval tyranny,” he underlined at a special meeting of the Kremlin officials to tackle the problem of cadres following the collapse of Communist “Nomenklatura” system.

Mr. Medvedev lamented that recruiting capable leaders is a particularly difficult task in the regions, which he described as suffering a “famine of cadre”.

He said that Kremlin is finding it harder to find qualified persons to fill even gubernatorial posts. “Every time we have to rake our brains over how to find candidates for higher office in the regions,” he said adding, “There is no bench with substitute players.”

He said he would handpick top candidates for regional posts to form a “presidential reserve”. The system, he said, would reduce corruption by ensuring that the candidates display “real talent” rather than taking advantage of “acquaintances and corruption.”

The former President, Vladimir Putin, moved to rein in the regions, where widespread nepotism is prevalent, with a 2005 law abolishing direct elections of regional leaders in favour of the Kremlin-appointed Governors. — PTI

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