Vitaliy Klitschko determined who his deputies will be in the Kyiv State City Administration

Klitschko delegate some of the powers to the people around him

Photo: Unian

Head of the Kyiv State City Administration (KSCA) and Kyiv Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko submitted to the Cabinet of Ministers his appointments of five of his deputies. Neither they nor Klitschko have experience of managing the city’s economy.

Ryabikin lost to Nikonov

A source of Capital inside the apparatus of Premier Arseniy Yatsenyuk said Klitschko submitted his nominees for appointment of his deputies on July 14. Among them he proposes his current advisor and co-owner of the construction company K.A. Development Ihor Nikonov for the post of first deputy. As Capital informed last week Nikonov is actively involved in the work of the administration. Sources of Capital in the KSCA say the manager of the team of advisors has influence on the adoption of staff decisions of Klitschko.

Noteworthy is that after Klitschko was elected mayor of Kyiv he appointed Pavlo Ryabikin (UDAR party) his first deputy at a meeting with Maidan activists. But now he recommended him only for the position of assistant head of the administration.

The former head of the national project “Clean City” and former candidate of UDAR for a seat in the 2012 parliamentary elections in the Chernivtsi oblast Bohdan Balasynovych, President of the Ukrainian Medicine Club Ivan Soroka and Executive Director of the Koktebel Jazz Festival Kirill Mlinarich were proposed for three posts.

The journalist said Balasynovych would be responsible for economic and investments affairs, Soroka for humanitarian issues and Mlinarich would handle socio-cultural affairs.

According to information of deputy of the Kyiv City Council Andriy Strannikov, who has been a close ally of Klitschko over the past several years, the KSCA is expecting a resolution on the appointment of a deputy chairman in the nearest days. “It would be improper to comment on these questions, while only Klitschko has the right to give direct responses to them, but appointments will definitely be made very soon,” Strannikov told Capital. He also noted that the city council cannot start the review of land and property issues to eliminate the budget deficit without the signature of the deputy chair of the KSCA.

However, the appointment of new deputies may be carried over due to legal problems. As Capital learned, deputy of the KSCA Vladyslav Holub is on sick leave. Bohdan Dubas, another deputy of the team of the former chairman of the administration Volodymyr Bondarenko, is also on sick leave. Earlier, Klitschko stated that he signed a statement about the dismissal of his deputies.

Staff cleansing

Former head of the KSCA Volodymyr Bondarenko said the quota of five deputies of the head of the KSCA was established by the Cabinet of Ministers as a city with special status in the spring of 2013. He noted that the deputies that Klitschko proposed are effective managers, though he admits that they do not have experience in municipal and economic spheres.

“In such cases, the bets are placed on directors of departments and management, but under Klitschko they are replaced before the appointment of deputies of the administration,” Bondarenko told Capital.

Noteworthy is that over the past week the managers of eight municipal enterprises were dismissed. Among them were the Kyiv Metro, advertising and passenger transport companies. “Currently, there is total mayhem in the administration. Department managers who worked in their positions more than two decades are being fired left and right. The management of municipal enterprises is being fired. In short, a staff cleansing is being carried out. New appointments are not being made publicly as Klitschko promised after his election,” a source in the administration assured.

First mayor of Kyiv Leonid Kosakovskiy believes that in the process of formation of Klitschko’s team time is playing against him. After all, taking into account the short-term period of the power of the Kyiv City Council and the city’s mayor and the elections that will be held in the fall of 2015, the city authorities should have started working immediately following the announcement of the election results. Kosakovskiy says the plan of action proposed by Klitschko more resembles political slogans.

“Business and city administration are different notions. Up until this very day preparations for winter have not begun and budget issues have not been resolved. I think this fall will not be easy for the administration under Klitschko,” say Kosakovskiy.

A source of Capital in the UDAR party says the majority of proposals of candidates for the position of deputy chair of the KSCA were long ago in the inner circles of Klitschko, though earlier they tried to make a name for themselves in other political projects. As a reminder, after the decree on the appointment of deputies of the head of the KSCA is agreed with the Cabinet it must be signed by the president.