Bakyiev’s Personnel in modern governance: ministers, governor, speaker of parliament
On May 13, Sadyr Zhaparov met with candidates for deputies from the Leninsky district. The president stated that the country is currently experiencing a “personnel shortage” and that he is willing to appoint “even an alien” to a position as long as they are capable of working. The president also mentioned that “it is difficult to find people even for ministerial positions”.
Factcheck.kg journalists analyzed the current composition of the cabinets of ministers, the presidential administration, and the Jogorku Kenesh (Parliament), and revealed the effect of “personnel shortage” on the actions of authorities. It was found that at least four officials who hold top leadership positions are somehow connected to fugitive president Kurmanbek Bakyiev.
We will explain what influence “Bakiyev’s personnel” have in the country today.
Minister of Digital Development
In the beginning of 2022, it was announced that Talantbek Imanov had been appointed as the Acting Minister of Digital Development, and lately his position got approved by the Jogorku Kenesh. Around the same time, Factcheck.kg journalists published a biography of Imanov, revealing that he had previously worked as a driver for Alexey Shirshov and had also been employed in the security service of TNC “Dastan”. Later, during a session of the Jogorku Kenesh, Imanov himself confirmed that he worked alongside Shirshov.
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In May 2022, it was revealed that the Minister of Digital Development had transferred state shares to “Kyrgyztelecom”, “Eurasional Savings Bank”, “TNC Dastan”, and “Alpha telecom”(brand “MEGA”, 100% state-owned – editor’s note). According to investigations conducted by “Azattyk” and Temirov Live, the first three companies were directly linked to Shirshov.
In June 2022, “Radio Azattyk” journalists published an investigation revealing how 54 million soms were embezzled from the state enterprise “Ulan”, a subsidiary of OJSC TNC “Dastan”. The investigation also implicates Talantbek Imanov, as he was the head of TNC “Dastan” at the time of funds’ withdrawal. The suspect who was accused of embezzlement was his son-in-law (okul bala).
Minister of energy
In October 2022, Taalaibek Ibraev was appointed as the Minister of of Energy of Kyrgyzstan. During the reign of Bakiyev, Ibraev served as Commercial Director of “Severelectro” and later as the Deputy CEO of OJSC “National Electric Grid of Kyrgyzstan (NEGK). Notably, on January 19 of this year, Taalaibek Ibraev announced the implementation of rotational power outages, which were last enforced in 2008 during the prevalence of “Shirshov schemes”.
After the revolution in 2010, the General Prosecutor’s Office of Kyrgyzstan officially referred to Ibraev as a supporter of Alexey Shirshov. In August 2010, the Prosecutor’s office initiated a criminal case regarding the procurement of used transformers at inflated prices by the National Electric Grid of Kyrgyzstan. This resulted in a loss of 108 million soms for the electric company. Ibraev was also involved in this case. The General Prosecutor’s Office found that Ibraev and the Commercial Director of NEGK, Alexey Viktorovich Chapaev, were involved in a criminal conspiracy with the members of the tender committee. It is unknown whether this criminal case was brought to a conclusion.
Governor Of Naryn Region
In July 2022, Sadyr Japarov signed a decree appointing Altynbek Ergeshov as the authorized representative of the President of the Kyrgyz Republic in the Naryn Region. During Bakiyev’s presidency, Ergeshov initially served as the head of the Marketing and State Procurement Department of the Presidential Administration, and from 2009 onwards, he became an assistant to the now-fugitive president. Even after the revolution in 2010, Ergeshov continued his work first in the government apparatus, then later in the presidential Administration.
In 2021, Edil Baisalov, who is currently the deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers, spoke about Ergeshov as follows: “This is a valuable experience. Any government official in any country […] gains tremendous experience by working closely with the top leader. They observe the decision-making process […] and learn from it. Regardless of one’s opinions about Kurmanbek Bakiyev according to the assessments of different people he was the president of our country.”
The Speaker of Parliament
Another former Bakiyev-affiliated personnel is Nurlan Shakiyev. He became the Speaker of the Jogorku Kenesh in October 2022. According to his biography, Shakiyev served as the press secretary for Kurmanbek Bakiyev from 2006 to 2009. The first scandal involving him occurred when he was the CEO of New TV channel. In 2019, the channel aired a film about Kurmanbek Bakiyev’s life, which later was met with criticism from the public. As a result, the State Committee for National Security issued a warning to Shakiyev.
Another scandal involving Shakiyev occurred recently. In early May, a photo of a document began circulating on social media, where he allegedly requesting the Prosecutor General to “remove information about former President Kurmanbek Bakiyev from government websites, including the judicial authorities, and block the circulation of information that tarnishes the honor of Bakiyev”. The press-service of the Jogorku Kenesh stated that the document was fabricated. On May 6, it was announced that Dilbar Alimova, the chief editor of the online publication “PolitKlinika”, who had published the document, was called to appear for questioning by the SCNS. Subsequently, the publication removed the news article about “Shakiyev’s letter” from its website.
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Let us recall that in Kyrgyzstan, there are three key figures, firstly, the president, as the country follows a presidential form of government. Additionally, the head of the Cabinet of Ministers and the speaker of the parliament serve as representatives of the executive branch and the will of the people, respectively. Therefore, one of the three top officials of the state is a former press secretary Bakiyev.
Additional information
In May 2022, the former head of TNC “Dastan” Alexey Shirshov (close friend of Maksim Baliyev) returned to Kyrgyzstan. This fueled discussions about the possible return of “Bakiyev’s era”, because Shershov is known for his “Shershov schemes”. The details about how these schemes operated can be found in an article by our colleagues at Kaktus.media. However, the President debunked these rumors in an interview with the state information agency “Kabar.”
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Earlier this year, Sadyr Japarov met with former presidents of Kyrgyzstan, including the fugitives Askar Akayev and Kurmanbek Bakiyev. This move sparked criticism from Kyrgyz citizens, prompting Japarov to appeal to the people, urging them to “set aside the past, grievances, and complaints.”
Kurmanbek Bakiyev served as the President of Kyrgyzstan from 2005 to 2010. His regime is known for power usurpation, political assassinations, and clan-based governance. You can learn more about the years of Bakiyev’s rule by following the link. Kurmanbek Bakiyev was overthrown as a result of a revolution that took place on April 7, 2010. This revolution later came to be known as the “bloody” revolution due to the order to shoot at protesters. According to official reports, a total of 84 people lost their lives during the mass unrest that accompanied the change of power in Kyrgyzstan. Currently, Bakiyev is located in Belarus.Alexey Shirshov is considered a close associate of Maxim Bakiyev, the son of Kurmanbek Bakiyev. During Bakiyev’s presidency, Shirshov first served as the financial director of OJSC “Electric Stations” and later as the chairman of the board of OJSC TNC “Dastan”. Shirshov is known as the central figure behind the major corruption schemes in Kyrgyzstan’s energy sector, which became known as the “Shirshov schemes”. After the 2010 revolution, he left Kyrgyzstan and was wanted internationally. In May 2022, it was reported that Shirshov had been arrested by the SCNS on suspicion of illegal transfer of valuable real estate assets from state ownership within the territory of the “Aurora Plus” resort. Later, it was revealed that Shirshov had been placed under house arrest.