COSTA RICA NEWS – In less than a month at the job, possibly one of the most difficult of any government agency, the Minister of Public Words and Transport (MOPT), Carlos Segnini, says he already has evidence of of the first cases of corruption within his ministry.
Segnini, says he will boot out anyone who hinders or is a vago (deadbeat) and is calling on collaboration of the workers themselves and the different institutions are its command.
The Minister said Thursday that employees share the need to “clean up” the ministry, one of the most important and said to be or believed to be, one of the most corrupt.
Moving forward, 0n Friday, Segnini, appointed a new director of the Policia de Tránsito, naming a 32 year veteran of the force, Mario Calderón.
The replacement of Germán Marín, who held the post during the Arias administration (2006-2010) and the last year of the Chinchilla administration (2010-2014), is normal. New governments tend to replace key people in top posts.
“With his arrival we want to bring to the traffic police discipline transparency and honesty, qualities of the new director”, said Segnini.
The MOPT minister also named traffic official Alexander Solano as the new deputy director of the police force.
Calderón said that one of the biggest challenges he faces is the lack of sufficient officials, solved by planning and strategy to mobilize officials where they are most needed.
This initiative, if successful, will result in either fewer traffic stops or vastly increased revenues from traffic tickets. It will also mean an entire change in culture – what does one do now when stopped by Transito?