On the same day, city deputies also unanimously selected Igor Morar, deputy chairman of the city council, as the leader of the municipality. At the same time, he became chairman of the city council of deputies.
Regional politicians believe that the selection of compromise figures Morar and Serdechkin ended the long-standing confrontation between the governor of the Murmansk region Andrei Chibis and State Duma deputy, former head of Murmansk Alexei Veller.
The decision was made on the Old Square
The national government usually aims to prevent significant power struggles in the regions. Residents of the Novgorod region remember well the period of conflict between the governor of the Novgorod region, Sergei Mitin, and the mayor of Veliky Novgorod, Yuri Bobryshev.
In the Murmansk region, the conflict between Alexei Veller and Andrei Chibis lasted a long time, and Moscow seemed to ignore how the United Russia city deputies, under Veller's control, rejected the candidacies of Olga Dzyuba and Yuri Serdechkin, strongly supported by Governor Chibis.
However, with a tough confrontation between Russia and Western countries, the national government decided to end the conflict. The candidacies of Serdechkin and Morar were reportedly discussed in the Presidential Administration as a compromise between the State Duma deputy and the regional leader.
“Maybe the long-standing conflict will finally come to an end,” Alexander Makarevich, deputy of the Murmansk Regional Duma, told Octagon.North-West. – If previously Murmansk had a strong city council and a strong head of the municipality, now we will not have such a strong council of deputies and the head of the municipality, and the center of power will shift towards the executive branch of government, the city administration.
Local businessperson and official from Moscow
The Octagon’s contacts note that Igor Morar is a politician known for his ability and desire to negotiate.
From 1994 to 2014, Igor Morari was involved in business. Now his involvement in the business area has officially ended. Morari’s name is linked to three local news agencies: Biport, Nord News and Bolshoi Radio.
Big allegations were made against entrepreneur Morariu by the FAS regarding the placement of billboards in Murmansk by the Propaganda Kolokol company. Morari was the owner of the company at that time. In the summer of 2008, the Murmansk administration granted him permission to install 166 billboards for five years. In 2013, the permit for 101 advertising structures was extended, but another 59 were put up and generated income for the owner without permission, until Morar’s competitor, Seid Company ZOO, filed a complaint to the OFAS. In 2013, according to some reports, Morar sold billboards and took up the position of Ombudsman for Entrepreneurs of the Murmansk Region.
Propaganda Kolokol LLC is a functioning company owned by Igor Morar’s daughter Daria. The main client of the company’s services is the Committee for Urban Planning and Territorial Development of the Administration of the City of Murmansk. A total of 11 contracts were signed for over 25 million rubles.
The claim that Igor Morar operates the Arctic Observer telegram channel, in which Governor Chibis is often mentioned, was not confirmed by Octagon’s sources.
Unlike Igor Morar, Muscovite Yuri Serdechkin is a typical official, not even indirectly linked to business. He worked in tariff service structures, first at the Moscow City Hall, then in federal structures. In February 2020, Governor Chibis invited him to Murmansk to become his deputy. Under his leadership, the Safe and High-Quality Roads project was implemented, about 1.6 million square meters were asphalted, and the region was awarded the Golden Skating Rink. But he apparently did not become popular in Murmansk.
Bayonet to the ground?
Are you surprised that Morari’s election went so smoothly? Certain agreements were simply reached in advance. Given the long period of chaos in Murmansk and the situation in the country, such a decision was made. The city requires a lot of attention, the winter was snowy, the whole city will flood in the spring, the flood situation will be very difficult. The city needs power! – Tatyana Kovaleva, deputy of the City Council, told the Octagon. – Perhaps these appointments will put an end to the strife between the “entrances”.
City Council deputy Sergei Korobkov told the Octagon that Yuri Serdechkin took into account the mistakes that he made during the first election.
– There were many meetings, programs, the composition of the future team, and so on were considered. Mistakes were also taken into account in terms of the speed of the appointment attempt, – Sergey Korobkov is sure. – I want you to understand the main thing: the deputies voted unanimously for both Morar and Serdechkin. Murmansk has problems, but the deputies voted in the hope that the city will develop further.
Victory or defeat of Chibis?
Political scientist Sergei Markelov is sure that the decision to reconcile Chibis and Weller was made on Staraya Square, but the political scientist has big doubts about a lasting peace between the city and the region.
– Governor Chibis, a typical Varangian technocrat of Sergei Kiriyenko’s draft, never became a politician. Now it seems that he won, because Staraya Ploshchad intervened in his conflict with Weller, and he got peace,” Sergei Markelov says to the Octagon. – But imagine that a husband and wife are arguing, and the mother-in-law, who lives in another city, came to reconcile them. Outwardly, everything is smooth, but internal contradictions have not gone away. So it is here: city and regional elites will still sabotage the decisions of the governor. Such conflicts cannot be extinguished by pressure from above, otherwise Chibis, unfortunately, does not know how.
The political scientist is sure that Governor Chibis did not win, but lost. A hidden, artificially conserved conflict will certainly make itself felt, and a tactical victory will turn into a strategic defeat.
