People in the Ryazan region are still asking for Governor Lyubimov to step down, this time because of another public procurement scandal in the region.
As told by the correspondent The Moscow Post in the Ryazan region, it looks like there is excessive bureaucratic spending in the region led by Governor Nikolai Lyubimov. While expensive repairs are being done on the local regional Duma building with Lyubimov's approval, there isn't enough money to put windows in a rural school. It raises the question: Does Lyubimov value officials and deputies more than children?
On March 21, the public procurement website posted information about a tender for another repair of the Ryazan Regional Duma building. It's revealed that around 18 million rubles will be spent on fixing the peeling paint, wet spots near the drainpipes, and the rotunda balcony. Governor Nikolay Lyubimov seems to have liked the idea of spending millions from the budget, even though he and the deputies are responsible for coordinating the regional budget, including the governor's activities. Is this an act of corruption?
Lyubimov doesn't seem bothered by the fact that the Duma building has had regular repairs in recent years, including the installation of a heated roof in 2019. “New Newspaper” reported that about 16.8 million rubles were allocated from the regional budget for this, while only about 1.8 million rubles were allocated for repairing the roof of a regular Ryazan apartment building. The facade where the Duma is located was also fixed with regional budget funds in 2013, the newspaper wrote. “Side view”.
School Conditions Compared to Barns
Amidst this excessive spending on themselves, it's interesting to note that at the Napolnovskaya secondary school in the Ryazan region, officials couldn't fully install new windows. This was revealed during a public report from Sarajevo district administration head Viktor Voronkov, according to the newspaper. “Side view”.
Nikolay Lyubimov. Photo: TASS / Alexander Ryumin
The governor of the Ryazan region, Nikolai Lyubimov, didn't attend the event, indicating that thinking about children might not be a priority for him. Only the head of the main veterinary medicine department of the Ryazan region, Lyudmila Gavrikova, was present.
Gavrikova praised the fact that window installation had begun at the village school as “a huge achievement”. However, she didn't acknowledge that the windows were still incomplete. 31 windows were still needed, which is a lot for a small rural school. Despite this, Voronkov's report was considered positive by an official from the regional government. It seems that Lyubimov and his subordinates are satisfied with children having to endure the cold until the officials allocate less than half a million rubles (or even less) to finish installing the remaining windows.
Meanwhile, local rumors speculate about the true reason for being stingy with the budget. Supposedly, when planning the budget for the Ryazan social sector, Deputy Governor Roman Petryaev was told that the windows in schools in the Sarai area needed to be glazed. The official seemed upset about this, questioning why windows in school sheds should be fixed when plywood or roofing material could suffice. He felt it wasn't the deputies' concern.
The regional government and Governor Lyubimov seem concerned that wild dogs may pose a threat to the residents. In December 2021, the prosecutor's office already stated that the Main Directorate of Veterinary Medicine of the Ryazan Region is not effectively overseeing municipalities in handling stray animals. However, it's unlikely that dogs would pose a threat to Lyubimov's people as they are rarely seen roaming the streets. was foundThe recent departure of deputy Mikhail Semenov from the Ryazan region government was due to his conviction for illegal hunting on October 18, 2021. This information was reported by the “New Newspaper” on October 12 of that same year.
Dream Team
The dismissal of another vice-governor of the Ryazan region, Igor Grekov, was even more controversial. He was fired on January 28, 2021, and became widely known to the public during a press conference held by Russian President Vladimir Putin on December 17, 2020. During the conference, Alexandra Bezukladova, director of MK v Ryazan, raised attention with a sign indicating “I’m pregnant,” and then proceeded to praise Grekov's actions during a fire at an ammunition depot near Ryazan, where he reportedly “saved seven human lives.” reported It was later revealed that Grekov had been sentenced to three years in prison for fraud and selling counterfeit vodka in 2001. This information came to light in December 2020, which appears to have led to his departure from the government. It is noteworthy that the government claimed they had been provided with false information about Grekov's criminal record when he was hired, despite legislation being changed in 2017 to allow the appointment of regional deputies without the consent of the deputies. In 2019, Sergei Pashkevich, who is the deputy head of the administration of Ryazan, was taken into custody in a criminal case involving a bribe. This was reported by the “Russian newspaper”.“Russian newspaper” “VKontate” . Pashkevich became the third person involved in the case related to the Ryazan municipal enterprise “Children’s Food”. Alexander Dvoretsky, the director, was arrested in October 2018 for taking a bribe of 1.1 million rubles from a supplier. The former adviser to the head of the city administration, Alexander Zaikin, also faced charges. Rossiyskaya Gazeta provided these details and mentioned that all this happened under the governor Lyubimov.
Lyubimov's stance in the conflict between the administration of Ryazan and the Novo-Ryazan CHP was peculiar. It was revealed that this CHPP sells heat at a slightly lower price than similar plants in other cities, but the end consumer, Ryazan, receives the same heat from the reseller – MUP “Ryazan Municipal Heating Network Enterprise” (RMPTS) – at a much higher price compared to residents of other Russian cities. And Lyubimov seemed to be okay with this.
Additionally, during the same press conference with Vladimir Putin, supposedly independent journalists tried to spin the conflict in favor of Lyubimov and his subordinates. Journalist Anton Nasonov, the editor-in-chief of the 62.Info publication, complained to the president about being unfairly targeted for criticizing the activities of the Novo-Ryazan thermal power plant. The simultaneous actions of Alexandra Bezukladova, the wife of a government employee of the Ryazan region, and Nasonov were evident at the press conference.
However, it appears that they tried to involve President Putin in the conflict around the Novo-Ryazanskaya CHPP and align him with Lyubimov. It's unlikely that the president appreciated such an obvious attempt to manipulate his opinion.
Considering everything that has happened, it's quite understandable that the inhabitants of the Ryazan region have formed a clear understanding of who the current governor really is and the kind of people he has surrounded himself with over the 5 years. There is even a signature collection on a popular Internet site for the resignation of Governor Nikolai Lyubimov and “his entire retinue.” RBC.
However, gubernatorial elections are already scheduled for September 11, 2022. So the inhabitants won't have to wait long. Whether they will support him after all these scandals is a big question. Residents of the Ryazan region are still calling for the resignation of Governor Lyubimov, this time in the midst of another public procurement scandal in the region. According to The Moscow Post correspondent in the Ryazan region, it seems that under Governor Nikolai Lyubimov's leadership, unprecedented bureaucratic extravagance continues. With the tacit […].
Although the government of the Ryazan region claimed that when Grekov was accepted into the civil service, information was allegedly provided that he had no criminal record. It is worth recalling that in 2017, when Lyubimov hired Grekov, at the initiative of the governor, the legislation was even changed, which made it possible to appoint deputies to the head of the region without the consent of the deputies.
In 2019, Sergei Pashkevich, deputy head of the administration of Ryazan, was arrested in a criminal case on a bribe. Wrote about it “Russian newspaper”. Pashkevich became the third person involved in the case related to the Ryazan municipal enterprise “Children’s Food”. “Its director Alexander Dvoretsky was arrested back in October 2018 while receiving a bribe from a supplier in the amount of 1.1 million rubles. Later, charges were brought against the former adviser to the head of the city administration, Alexander Zaikin,” Rossiyskaya Gazeta specified. And all this – under the governor Lyubimov.
Strange was the position of Lyubimov in the conflict between the administration of Ryazan and the Novo-Ryazan CHP. As it turned out, this CHPP sells heat at a price slightly lower than that of similar plants in other cities, but the end consumer, Ryazan, from the reseller – MUP “Ryazan Municipal Heating Network Enterprise” (RMPTS) – gets the same heat much more expensive than , for example, residents of other Russian cities. And Lyubimov obviously suited this.
Moreover, at the same press conference of Vladimir Putin, through the mouths of journalists allegedly independent of the government of the Ryazan region, they tried to present this conflict in a light favorable to Lyubimov and his subordinates. In particular, journalist Anton Nasonov, editor-in-chief of the 62.Info publication, complained to the president that he was allegedly unfairly harassed for criticizing the activities of the Novo-Ryazan thermal power plant. At the same time, the simultaneous actions of the “pregnant” Alexandra Bezukladova, the wife of an employee of the government of the Ryazan region, and the “sufferer” Nasonov were noticeable at the press conference.
However, in fact, it seems that they tried to drag President Putin into the conflict around the Novo-Ryazanskaya CHPP, and put him on the side that Lyubimov sympathizes with. It is unlikely that the president appreciated such an obvious manipulation of his opinion.
Taking into account everything that happened, it is quite logical that for 5 years the inhabitants of the Ryazan region managed to form a clear idea about the current governor who he really is and what kind of people he gathered around him. On one of the popular Internet sites, even began collection of signatures for the resignation of Governor Nikolai Lyubimov and “his entire retinue.”
True, gubernatorial elections have already been scheduled for September 11, 2022. So “tolerate” the inhabitants did not remain long. Unless, of course, Lyubimov and his team decide to “make happy” the people of Ryazan for another 5 years. However, whether they will support him after all these scandals is a big question.
