Open Government Meetings - A Theater for the Naive 0 8

Riga City Council member Ringolds Balodis drew attention to a recent interview with the former director of the State Chancellery, Janis Citskovskis, on a YouTube channel. Since Citskovskis was 'let go' from his position and made the sole scapegoat for the 'plane scandal,' he has nothing to lose and began to share what he knows. Citskovskis implied that open government meetings are often theatrical performances for naive audiences.

"Janis Citskovskis, in the interview, essentially states that the open meetings of the Cabinet of Ministers introduced by Einars Repše at one time are largely a farce. The idea was beautiful – openness, public oversight, transparent decisions. The reality? A performance.

He recounts a specific episode when the government was led by Krišjānis Kariņš. Before the official Cabinet meeting, even before some coalition ministers arrived, there is a kind of dress rehearsal. The Prime Minister, certain ministers, and even officials from the Ministry of Finance rehearse the script: who will ask what, what will be answered, how it will be formulated, how to 'corner' the opponent. This means that the public meeting is not a discussion and a moment for decision-making. It is a spectacle. Decisions are pre-agreed, positions are divided, and there is no room for improvisation. If this is the system, then openness becomes a decoration. The process is demonstrated to the public, which has actually already been concluded behind closed doors.

And this is an important question: is the government meeting a place where decisions are made, or a place where a political performance is staged? Even Repše himself admitted at one time that open Cabinet meetings practically turn into a farce. We need real decisions and accountability. Not theaters with pre-assigned roles," stated Deputy Ringolds Balodis.