Ministerial advisors perform real and necessary work, and are not merely formal figures or 'window dressing', stated the advisor to the Minister of Transport, lecturer at the University of Stradiņš in Riga, Kristaps Zālīte.
As is known, in Latvia, some ministers have dozens of advisors, including freelancers. This expansion of staff has drawn criticism. For instance, Member of the European Parliament Reinis Pozņaks, founder of the 'Twitter Convoy' initiative, said: 'Honestly, I don’t quite understand why the minister needs a ministry then. Aren’t there experts there? I can understand that the prime minister needs to be aware of everything. But if you have a ministry with hundreds of employees, why do you need another 20 advisors in the office? That’s a good question.'
Kristaps Zālīte answered this question on the TV24 program 'Kārtības rullis'. According to him, it is impossible to generalize and compare the work of advisors, as ministries and ministers differ from one another.
'Offices are different, ministers are different — these things cannot be compared,' emphasized Zālīte.
He noted that an advisor is essentially a 'continuation of the minister.' The minister is a living person with their own agenda, who physically cannot be present everywhere and deal with all issues at the same time. Therefore, they delegate priorities, and advisors help maintain focus on key tasks, including communication and coordination of processes.
He also pointed out that constant criticism of political advisors drives people away from politics in general. If a public image is formed that politics is entered either by 'bad' or 'stupid' people, it is not surprising that many do not want to get involved.
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