The Administrative Court’s decision yesterday to annul the promotions of six senior police officers made in 2017 has had a chain reaction within the police force.
Three out of the six affected individuals have been appointed as assistant chiefs, and with the cancellation of their previous promotions, the lower rank is also affected.
Due to the long time elapsed since their promotion, some were appointed to higher positions, resulting in a greater impact due to the cancellation of their previous promotions.
Currently, the leadership pyramid of the police force is disrupted, as all four assistant chiefs (the third rank in the organizational chart) have lost their positions.
Meanwhile, the two applicants who succeeded in overturning the promotions have already retired from the police force due to the six years that passed until the decision was issued.
This now poses a double problem for the Minister of Justice and Public Order and the Chief of Police.
Firstly, how to rectify the situation after the court’s observations, which concern the substance of the promotions and not just a procedural issue, and secondly, how to reinstate the two successful applicants.
Yesterday, the issue was discussed in the morning meeting of the police leadership with police directors, and simultaneously, it is being studied at a higher level.
With the current situation, promotions cannot be made to lower ranks because assistant chiefs participate in the Evaluation and Crisis Councils.
It is not ruled out that legal advice will be sought from the Legal Service to rectify the situation as soon as possible and restore calm within the Force.
This was done with one of the four assistant chiefs, whose promotion was initially annulled, and the reassessment of those affected was expected to lead to a new decision based on the data identified by the Court.
The issue of annulled promotions in the Police by the Courts is more widespread and should raise concerns because, at the moment, there are pending annulled promotions to lower ranks as well.
This issue was raised in the latest special report by the Auditor General on the Police, with the Chief of the Force, Stelios Papatheodorou, admitting that when the reassessment process is repeated, the same individuals are promoted.
The Auditor General had pointed out the paradox that while promotions of officers were being annulled, the decisions were not immediately implemented, resulting in those officers continuing to receive a salary from a higher scale rather than the downgraded one.
Nevertheless, the Chief had informed the Auditor in response to their recommendations that “the decisions of the Courts will be implemented immediately, with information and guidance from the Legal Service regarding the handling of each case separately.”
