Tug-of-war at the top of Cagliari's local health authority: the acting director general resigns, and the council reprimands her.
Cristina Garau considers her position as substitute teacher complete after the chaos surrounding the commissioners. Health Director General Schael: "The law doesn't provide for it. Tell us if you're resigning."Per restare aggiornato entra nel nostro canale Whatsapp
The future of the Cagliari Local Health Authority hangs on a single paragraph. The decisions regarding the existence of a general director (not even a full-time one, but an acting one) at the helm of Sardinia's largest healthcare agency, which has been without a designated manager for 59 days, hinge on Article 2-octies and its interpretation.
The (hermeneutic) clash is between the general director of the health department , Thomas Schael, recently appointed by Alessandra Todde, and the acting director of the ASL, Cristina Garau, appointed to that role after the administration of the company – under Aldo Atzori – was declared unconstitutional.
Yesterday, according to the law, she announced that starting next Monday she would be returning to the University of Cagliari, where she is employed. The reason: the letter of appointment referred to a law that requires the appointment of a substantive general manager within 60 days of the position becoming vacant. This deadline expires, in fact, on Monday. If that date were to pass without the appointment of a manager, the law continues, "Article 2, paragraph 2-octies" would apply. And here's what's at issue: the text states that "the Minister of Health (...) sets a suitable deadline for making the necessary arrangements and, after that deadline (...) proposes to the Council of Ministers a replacement, including the appointment of a commissioner ad acta."
For Garau, that passage establishes that his term is over. Schael argues that the interpretation is incorrect. According to the department's director general, the paragraph " in no way implies the dismissal of the acting director." He therefore asks Garau to clarify whether "with your certified email of February 20th , you intend to resign from your position as acting director general of the Cagliari Local Health Authority (ASL) 8, or whether, instead, you believe the legal provision has a legal effect not envisaged by it."
Schael's position suggests that politicians (Todde and his allies) still don't have a name for the general management of the ASL.