Medvedev threatens Arkhangelsk governor with dismissal
Russia’s President Dmitry Medvedev has threatened Arkhangelsk Governor Ilya Mikhalchuk with dismissal because of problems in the public utilities sector.
- I really don’t understand what’s going on there. Is there a governor there or not? Medvedev asked in a recent meeting on problems in housing and public utilities, Izvestia reports.
This summer many of Arkhangelsk’s inhabitants were left without hot water for months because of arguments between an energy company and companies responsible for management of public services.
Medvedev ordered his presidential aide in the Northwestern Federal District Nikolay Vinnichenko to inspect the activities of the leadership in Arkhangelsk in this matter:
- Does Arkhangelsk have a leadership capable of handling these problems, or do we have to change it? […] We cannot tolerate this any longer.
Ilya Mikhalchuk, on his side, takes the blame and responsibility for the situation that has occurred. – The criticism from the head of the state is not up for discussion or comments – it is correct and needs to be reacted to by eliminating the flaws, however hard this can be, he writes in his blog. – The president is always right! He adds.
This is not the first time Ilya Mikhalchuk is object for hard criticism from Russia’s top leadership. In March 2010 Prime Minister Vladimir Putin criticized Governor Mikhalchuk for wage arrears in very direct words. Mikhalchuk was called in to the Prime Minister’s office to discuss the social and economic situation in the Arkhangelsk region, particularly the problems of wages owed to budget-dependent employees.
