Baku/04.08.23/Turan: President Ilham Aliyev recently made significant changes in the leadership of the State Oil Company of the Republic of Azerbaijan (SOCAR). In a series of decrees and orders, several vice-presidents were dismissed from their positions, while new vice-presidents were appointed to replace them.
Those who were dismissed from their vice-president roles include Khalik Mammadov, Badal Badalov, Dashgin Iskanderov, Suleiman Gasimov, Yashar Latifov, and Rafiga Huseyn-zadeh. In their place, Ziba Mustafayeva, Arzu Javadova, Ismail Zargarli, Babek Huseynov, Afgan Isayev, Anar Mammadov, and Fuad Musayev were appointed as new vice-presidents.
Interestingly, some of the former vice-presidents, namely Suleiman Gasimov, Khalik Mammadov, Yashar Latifov, and Dashgin Iskenderov, were appointed as advisors to the SOCAR President, Rovshan Najaf.
These sudden changes have raised questions and concerns among experts and the public. Mirvari Gahramanli, chairman of the Public Union for the Protection of the Rights of Oil Workers, expressed her skepticism about the criteria and procedure for these appointments in an interview with the program "Difficult Question". She pointed out that out of the 10 SOCAR vice-presidents, only one is a specialist with a geological background, while others have various backgrounds such as law.
Gahramanli emphasized that succession planning has been a long-standing practice in the company, ensuring a competent and capable workforce for key roles. However, she believes that these traditions have been neglected recently, leading to potential issues for the company and the country.
Furthermore, Gahramanli raised concerns about the large number of vice-presidents in SOCAR and the lack of clear distribution of responsibilities among them. This situation may create challenges for the efficient functioning of the company in the future.--0--
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