Heidar Aliev traveled to Sumgait, an industrial center northeast of Baku, on 3 April to address a session of the municipal council. Aliev harshly criticized prominent local figures, including Sumgait Mayor Tavakkul Mamedov, who has held that post since at least 1985; Fikret Sadykhov, head of the state-owned concern Azkhimiya, which is responsible for many of the city\'s industrial enterprises; and Hidir Alovlu, who heads the Sumgait branch of the ruling Yeni Azerbaycan Party. Aliev said that corrupt decisions taken during the privatization process enabled Sadykhov and businessman Tofig Huseinov to appropriate many of the city\'s businesses. Aliev fired Mamedov, whom he publicly accused of appointing relatives to prominent positions, and named to succeed him First Deputy Minister of Youth Affairs, Sports, and Tourism Vagif Aliev, who, observers say, is close to President Aliev\'s son, Ilham Aliev. President Aliev called for measures to improve the \"moral climate\" in Sumgait. A roundtable discussion convened in Sumgait in December by the opposition Azerbaijan National Independence Party (AMIP) noted that the population was ready to launch mass protests against electricity shortages and similar infrastructure problems, the seriousness of which Mamedov downplayed. (Turan)