Third "Journalists' House" is prepared for handing over to families of shekhids and heroes of Patriotic War

Baku/25.08.23/Turan: A 17-storey residential building in the Sabail district of Baku, originally built for journalists, has been transferred to the balance of the Ministry of Labor and Social Security of Population. This means that apartments in an uninhabited house will not be donated to journalists," an activist of a group of media employees advocating the transfer of the house to journalists told Turan.

As you know, in July 2021, a group of 38 journalists and heads of public organizations appealed to President Aliyev with a request to transfer apartments in the third house to the families of martyrs, special forces soldiers, heroes of the Patriotic War.

According to the same source, on the eve of the third house, where there are 225 apartments, a group of specialists from public utilities visited, who checked the readiness of the building for occupancy.

At the same time, at the request of Turan, the Ministry of Health denied transferring the building to the Ministry's balance sheet.

Two previous 17-storey buildings in the Sabail district of Baku were handed over to journalists, while the rules for determining the owners of apartments were grossly violated. Some owners of new apartments have sold the housing donated by the president.

In December 2021, officials headed by the former executive director of the State Support Fund for Media Development Vyugar Safarli were dismissed from their posts and convicted. They were convicted of corruption and embezzlement of public funds during the construction and operation of these buildings. As a result, several editors-in-chief of various media outlets and dozens of people far from journalism who have no housing problems received apartments there.

After the scandal surrounding the distribution of apartments in the first two houses, discussions unfolded in society about the expediency of transferring apartments in the third house to war invalids and children of martyrs, which caused discontent among journalists who planned to get apartments in the third house. Critics of the presidential decree of July 19, 2017 on the state provision of apartments for journalists believe that there are really decent free housing citizens in society. These are orphans who grew up in orphanages, families of martyrs and war invalids. Another part of critics believes that the state provision of journalists with free apartments is an open form of media bribery.-0—