Following allegations of non-transparent procedures in the selection of executive officers in a General Government body, a team of Auditors - Inspectors of the National Transparency Authority (NΤΑ) carried out an audit to examine the procedures followed to fill the positions of responsibility and the body's compliance with the relevant legislative, regulatory and internal procedures and restrictions.
The audit for 2018 and 2020 found the following, among others, during the audit:
- The positions of responsibility at the General Directorate and Directorate level of the Entity's Central Office, namely three (3) General Director and nine (9) Director positions, were occupied in November and December of the year 2018, in the context of the reorganization of its organizational structure, through the conclusion of employment contracts of indefinite duration, while a three-year term of office is provided for the filling of the positions of responsibility.
Of these, two (2) positions of General Managers and two (2) Directors were filled by hiring external candidates with open-ended employment contracts, despite the explicit provision of the Internal Rules of Procedure in force at the time that the filling of positions of responsibility by external candidates is permitted through the conclusion of fixed-term employment contracts of three years' duration.
For the above selections, a call for expressions of interest was issued to the company's staff and to external candidates, but the relevant call did not specify the evaluation and selection procedure, the duration of the contract, the certification of the level of knowledge of foreign languages and computer skills provided for as required qualifications and, for the posts of Director, the equivalence of any foreign qualifications.
The evaluation of the candidates was entrusted to private consultancy firms, which provided a shortlist of shortlisted candidates, whose candidatures were then examined by a Committee of the Agency and subsequently decided by the Board, on the recommendation of the single management body.
- In November 2018, a contractual employee who had been serving since July of the same year was also appointed as the Director of the Human Resources Unit of the entity, with an amendment of his contract from fixed-term to indefinite term. This appointment was not preceded by a selection procedure or a vacancy notice.
- In March 2020, a person was recruited by the institution, under an open-ended employment contract, for the post of Head of a Regional Unit, who did not appear to possess the formal qualifications specified in the notice (a degree from a higher/higher education institution, majoring in Economics or Business Administration and knowledge of specialised computer programmes). The post in question was filled following a call for expressions of interest, a proposal by the candidate concerned from a collective recruitment body, but with a different composition from that provided for in the General Staff Regulations, and a decision by the single-member management body, although at the time the competent body was the Management Board of the institution.
- At the time of the on-the-spot check, the company had five (5) employees, who had exceeded the maximum age limit for employment.
In view of the above, the NTA made recommendations for the restoration of legality, the adoption of a corporate procedure for filling managerial positions, the provision of the qualifications required per position and the manner of their certification, as well as recommendations for the prevention of similar phenomena, promotion of transparency, meritocracy and provision of equal opportunities to all employees of the entity in the interest of its statutory purpose and the public interest.