Self-registration into Dmitry Medvedev's Oprichnina Has Started

President Dmitry Medvedev had a meeting dedicated to creation of complete system of reproduction and updating of professional elite in Russia. As the tool for creation of such system the president suggested to generate the all-Russian reserve of the effective administrative staff - a uniform popular database about the best experts at all three levels: municipal, regional and federal.

The most perspective professionals will enter into a so-called presidential quota, the head of the state emphasized. Thus it is necessary to invent correct selection criteria of the experts entering this quota so that the only presence in it would be for employers "the real quality symbol" of the professional worthy to work not only on public service but also in other places.

"It very often happens so that decision to appoint somebody on the leading post is accepted on acquaintance, by a principle of personal fidelity", - Medvedev recognized and called a society to get out from this vicious circle.

The heaviest situation with the staff is at regional and municipal levels. "Transition of smart officials from the regions into center and vice versa which is rare, though such mobility is not necessary to us", - the president noticed.

Besides the president specified necessity of creation of uniform system of personnel monitoring and information on vacancies as well as of a flexible, focused on a labour market education systems.

The target of the state - to create general approaches to formation of a reserve and procedure of competitive selection, D.Medvedev noted.

From editorial board: As the question of a professional training is really critical for the country and as we have been spoken on this theme for many years - on FORUM.msk and before its creation - interest of the new president to this old problem can be only welcomed only. If not for a lot of "if".

The mass-media noted at once that president Medvedev officially recognized the presence of simony, that is a sale of posts for money. At that simony takes place not only at local but also at the highest levels of hierarchy up to the posts of federal ministers. Posts of ministerial assistants and chapters of departments, governors and vice-governors - one shouldn't continue further more - are being sold.

"Edinaya Russia" already declared that it wants to take part in formation of a reserve staff for civil service. By autumn party members by means of large personnel agencies promise to gather nearby 1 thousand candidates. But everybody knows perfectly well that places in party lists are also being sold in grandiose scales and the party in power here is at the first place. Opposition is also not lacking behind - Zyuganov already declared that he had a desire to become the Kremlin personnel officer - about the level of his readiness to this work could be testified by the quantity of sold out places in the party list.

There is nothing to be said about the Federation Council - after creation of the mechanism of appointment of senators from the Kremlin the body became an open source of the shadow budget of the Kremlin administration.

At such total corruption mechanism of administrative elites formation besides have been existing for a long time - already from Yeltsin's times and having got their completeness and almost the status of the law at Putin, Medvedev needs not personnel reserve - he needs Oprichnina.

There were in Russia at least three such successful experiences - at Ivan the Terrible, Peter the First who equaled noblesse taken the service and well-born nobility with "soldiers" received personnel reserve - at Joseph Stalin, after Lenin's death diluted the party nomenclature, notorious "Lenin's staff" with a mass of "promoted workers" which were formed personally by him being Secretary General of the Central Committee.

Though there were a lot of unsuccessful experiences and Oprichnina at Ivan IV ended by nothing, Peter's noblemen were corrupted not less and even more than well-born nobility, while Stalin's promoted workers on behalf of former promoted worker Khruschev buried a system created by him.

Though these are historical analogies which illustrate much but prove nothing.

The question is - who will Medvedev displayed own loneliness use to produce "promoted workers"? Corrupt officials who are younger, corrupt young politicians of different orientation? Who? It's only clear that Surkov's Red Guards in the persons of members of "Nashi", "Young Guards of Edinaya Russia" and others will obviously not suit - they are a mod scene, while Medvedev needs trained managers, young generals and not infantry right now and right here.

During the Soviet time there was a system of preparation of the managerial personnel - no matter bad or good - but it was and it was really the system, the mechanism. In mass-media they have already started talking about its revival in new image but it's not so.

Executive worker in the USSR did not appear simply from anywhere. He necessarily began his career way as ordinary young expert in some sector of social production and it was there where his promotion started - with subsequent career growth which was accompanied by obligatory appointment stair none of which stair could be missed, besides there were a number of retrainings and reskillings which also made a system.

Anonymity was the lack of such system - it put forward expert - manager by itself, while Medvedev needs, I shall repeat, today "young generals" whom he would know personally and on whom he personally could rely. While he - knows no-bo-dy! He is alone.

Well plus to that even depersonalized Soviet system of promotion cannot be restored today in any way - social production was collapsed and there was a break of generations. That environment which put forward disappeared. Experts with the Soviet experience even up to 1991 young today do not suit Medvedev because of age. While those who as Medvedev began work in new conditions possess such specific experience that they suit not in "promoted workers" but in the future "nonvoters".

It is a very sad situation but in fact it is impossible to disorganize and destroy all the time hoping that "it's possible to improve at any moment". It will not be successful, the moment has been missed long time ago. And Medvedev's position today reminds situation with many of his historical predecessors from Godunov up to Gorbachev (Pseudo-Dmitry the First, Peter III, Paul, Alexander II, Kerensky, both Malenkov and Antropov joined him), who wanted something good but received the opposite in result.

One of the most reasonable and competent comments of Medvedev's personnel initiative in mass-media says: "It looks like the German and Austro-Hungarian model of 20s years of the last century when officials were checked for strength through service in province will be realized", - vice-president of the Center of Political Strategy Alexey Makarkin thinks. But the problem is that such model should be run in for long years and is effective only in a stable situation - a thing which Dmitry Medvedeva doesn't have.

The only possible real mechanism - formation of personnel using a method of a random sample as it happened in "Democratic Russia" of the beginning of 1990s years. That's the way Chubays, Nemtsov, Kirienko appeared among administrative elite... I would advise Dmitry Medvedev to go to casino and to play roulette for an evening. To see - if he has a lucky hand - he can risk, certainly...

Аnatoly Baranov, editor-in-chief of FORUM.msk

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