At a ceremony awarding state honors on the eve of Independence Day, Fergana regional governor Khairullo Bozorov addressed President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, suggesting that regional leaders could also write a book about the transformations Uzbekistan has undergone over the past ten years. He emphasized that governors have directly witnessed and contributed to these changes.
Bozorov recalled that at a recent meeting with entrepreneurs, the president mentioned the need to write a book comparing the country's past and present. "At our meeting with entrepreneurs, you said it's time to write a book, comparing the old history with the current one. In fact, I think we governors could also write a book and contribute to that part," Bozorov said.
He argued that simply comparing life over the last decade with the preceding period would suffice. Reflecting on his time as a district governor, Bozorov described challenges with electricity and water in agriculture. "As a district governor, we used to wait for electricity to come, for the pump to start, so we could irrigate the wheat. Sometimes it wasn't until April 25 that our first wheat got water," he recounted.
The governor noted that there were times when fulfilling grain plans required distributing quotas to organizations and even "collecting grain with buckets." "Every year there was a plan, and we had to figure out how to meet it, sometimes allocating it to organizations and gathering grain bucket by bucket," Bozorov said.
He also highlighted progress in preschool education in Fergana region, stating that enrollment has reached 87 percent. Bozorov recalled that previously, even maintaining kindergartens was a major challenge. "Kindergarten staff often didn't receive salaries, and to withdraw their pay from cards, they had to cash it out. Moreover, to keep the kindergarten from closing, they would give their own salaries to the children and sustain the facility," he said.
Such stories, he added, might seem unbelievable to newly appointed governors today. "If we tell these stories now, our new governors won't believe them," the regional head remarked.
Expressing gratitude for the president's trust, Bozorov pledged to transform Fergana into a poverty-free zone. "I promise to carry out the tasks you have set at the highest level and make Fergana free from poverty," he stated. He also affirmed readiness to "unconditionally" fulfill presidential directives and assignments. "We promise to be honest and work with loyalty in the land you trust," Bozorov concluded.
It is worth noting that on August 18, during a meeting with entrepreneurs, Shavkat Mirziyoyev tasked Jakhongir Ortikhojaev with preparing a book about entrepreneurs, including a special section on past "mask shows." "Of course, I will write it. This history cannot be ignored. You saved countless entrepreneurs as much as you could. Frankly, some fled, and some 'perished,'" the entrepreneur responded.
Earlier, Namangan regional governor Shavkat Abdurazzakov told the president that the phrase "electricity was cut off in Namangan" has faded from people's memory. Navoi regional governor Normat Tursunov announced that the region is "importing" labor from other parts of Uzbekistan. Governors of Bukhara and Khorezm regions stated their intention to completely eradicate poverty and unemployment by the end of 2026.
Source: www.gazeta.uz