Voters in Kyiv and Lviv, concerned about local issues, elect new mayors (04/02/06)

Voters in Kyiv and Lviv, concerned about local issues, elect new mayors

by Zenon Zawada
Kyiv Press Bureau

KYIV - Cities dear to the Ukrainian diaspora, Lviv and Kyiv, have new mayors.

In the capital city, Praveks Bank President Leonid Chernovetskyi won a decisive victory over newcomer Vitalii Klitschko and incumbent Oleksander Omelchenko, who was stung by a real estate debacle in March that hurt his campaign.

In Lviv, media mogul Andrii Sadovyi triumphed in a race to fill the mayor's post vacated by Lubomyr Buniak, who was forced to resign by the City Council in September for his incompetent and combative conduct as the city's leader.

Residents have high expectations that the new mayors will solve problems that are significant yet distinct for both cities.

Among Lviv's most serious crises is its deteriorating and neglected infrastructure.

The city's sewage system is woefully inadequate, while historic churches, monuments and buildings are wearing away without any upkeep from the city.

When running for mayor in 2002, Mr. Buniak based his campaign on promising to provide Lviv residents with 24-hour access to water, vowing to resign if he didn't. Four years later, most Lviv residents still have access to water for only four hours out of a typical day.

Such problems with utilities management have brought Lviv "to the brink of man-made catastrophe," Mr. Sadovyi said.

In the election to replace Mr. Buniak, both Mr. Sadovyi and his rival Vasyl Kuibida ran as members of the Our Ukraine bloc.

However, Our Ukraine decided to endorse Mr. Kuibida, the assistant chair of the National Rukh of Ukraine Party, who had served as Lviv's mayor before Mr. Buniak.

In response, Mr. Sadovyi got the support of the Pora-Reforms and Order Bloc.

When the campaign started in January, Mr. Kuibida had far higher ratings than Mr. Sadovyi.

The campaign was a vicious fight among 16 candidates, and Mr. Sadovyi won the election with about 40 percent of the vote. Mr. Kuibida finished with 30 percent, despite his name recognition and powerful endorsement.

The 37-year-old Mr. Sadovyi represents a new generation of leaders. He owns several media outlets, including Radio Lyuks and the Postup newspaper.

He also launched the Samopomich (Self-Reliance) citizens project in early 2005, an organization that offered Lviv residents free legal consultations, as well as help in repairing utilities, obtaining municipal services or dealing with other socio-economic problems.

"For this project, Mr. Sadovyi gained enormous popularity," said Ihor Balynskyi, the editor-in-chief of the Zakhidna Informatsiyna Korporatsia in Lviv.

Lviv's economy also had failed to improve during Mr. Buniak's tenure. Mr. Sadovyi said he would try to create 50,000 new jobs during the next four years.

While Lviv's problems revolve around providing its residents with basic utilities, Kyiv's government hasn't been able to provide affordable housing.

As a result of a poorly regulated construction industry, Mr. Omelchenko's critics complained that builders were accommodating only the city's wealthy, while the vast majority of its residents are paying rent that is hardly affordable.

When the Elite-Center began to offer new apartments at more affordable prices, it turned out to be a scam that cost some 1,500 investors more than $70 million in savings.

Mr. Chernovetskyi ran against Mr. Omelchenko under his own self-financed political bloc and wasn't expected to win.

He had about 15.5 percent support, ranking third behind Mr. Omelchenko and Mr. Klitschko in a Ukrainian Sociology Service poll conducted between February 14 and 22.

After election day, the Kyiv Regional Election Commission announced Mr. Chernovetskyi won 32 percent of the electorate, with 54 percent of the vote counted.

Mr. Klitschko trailed with 24 percent and Mr. Omelchenko placed third with 22 percent of the vote.

Mr. Chernovetskyi is known for owning one of Ukraine's largest banks, where he sells a book he wrote called, "How to Make Your First Million."

He served as a national deputy in the Verkhovna Rada in the last session as a member of the Christian-Liberal Party.

The banker is a charismatic Christian, which means that he believes the Holy Spirit is active today and can offer extraordinary abilities accessed through prayer.

Throughout Kyiv, Mr. Chernovetskyi is well-known for charity work that helps the elderly and disabled people.

He was able to pull his upset victory with the help of a unique strategy in which his supporters distributed food and supplies to poor, elderly and needy Kyiv residents.

The materials were distributed in the summertime, before election laws kicked into place, forbidding gift-giving by candidates.

Kyiv's new mayor doesn't speak Ukrainian, and has expressed no intention to start doing so.

However, it looks as though he may have other problems.

Four days after the election, the votes still haven't been counted to officially declare him mayor.

Mr. Chernovetskyi led a March 30 protest of 500 supporters to demand that the city's regional election commission speed up its count.

Mr. Omelchenko has demonstrated he won't give up so easily.

He has submitted a request to cancel the election results, accusing Mr. Klitschko and the Pora-Reforms and Order bloc of slandering him for having direct involvement in the Elite-Center real estate scam.

The Elite-Center partners who scammed investors, Russian-born Oleksander Volkonskyi and Oleh Shestak, have fled Ukraine and are being sought under an international search warrant.

| Home Page |