List of advisers published, transparency a must, spokesman says
The government has made public the list of its advisers and associates, some of whom are earning over €5,000 per month, with government spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis saying the aim was full transparency.
The list with the full details, qualifications, post and salary of each adviser has been uploaded on the presidency’s website.
Letymbiotis told the Cyprus News Agency (CNA) that this practice would be followed in the future too.
The spokesman said the list has changed since it was sent to parliament, as more advisers have been added.
Asked if the list has been made public due to the political pressure building up in view of its discussion at the House of Representatives on September 4, Letymbiotis said the government had from the start been willing to give the names.
He explained that the issue at hand was protecting personal data, which was overcome by the advisers giving their consent.
According to the list, the president has five advisers, the ministers of agriculture, labour, education, interior, health, defence and transport have two each, and the deputy minister of culture also has two.
The ministers of justice, foreign affairs and energy and the deputy ministers for shipping, social welfare, tourism and migration, as well as the government spokesman and the undersecretary to the president, all have one each.
Their gross salaries range from €2,083 to €5,166 per month.