In a previous short post, I noted that Mr. Niyazov's successor, President Berdymukhammedov, had eschewed the country-wide birthday party that had become customary for Turkmenbashi in favor of more private celebrations. I was particularly pleased that he had separated the public from the private realm.
However, it appears that some gaudy and celebratory moves were made in the public sphere after all. These included: a 30% increase in salary and pension benefits; the Order of the Motherland, which includes a large, two-pound gold medallion encrusted with diamonds; and a USD 20,000 bonus.
Transparent vs. opaque
Rather than focus on the seen, it might be wise to withhold judgement for the unseen. It is not the 20,000 bonus which gives rise to my main concern, nor the 30% raise, but that the initial salary is unknown. The first two are transparent; the latter is not.
King-sized bling
And what about that neck-wrenching, heart-stopping memento? Gold bar prices, .995 pure for ten ounces, is at a current market price of around USD 650 per troy ounce. Multiply that by 16 ounces per pound. Multiply that by two pounds. First cost approximation: USD 20,800. Subtract a little bit because some of the weight is diamonds and ribbon. Add in the cost of the diamonds (undetermined carats) and the workmanship.
Words vs. works
In Turkmenistan, 58% of the people live below the poverty line. If a large medallion incentivizes Mr. Berdymukhammedov to fix that problem, fine. It's just that this medal sends a very bad signal, contrary to Mr. B's stated goals of making Turkmenistan a better place to live.
Photo: GoldExchange.com
