Dmitry Azarov cannot worry about his reputation because of the arrest of Mykola Plaksin, says Vladimir Zvonovsky, doctor of sociology
Notebook discussed the aftermath of a huge corruption scandal with sociologist Zvonovsky, political scientist Komelev and crime journalist Vorontsova
In Samara, on the day of his birth, the court arrested regional Construction Minister Nikolai Plaksin, he is suspected of abuse of power (Article 286 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). The penalty for this is up to four years in prison. The official will spend the next two months in a remand center. Notepad found out why the criminal case against Plaksin is called political by many, and who benefits from this scandal?
The arrest of Samara Region Construction Minister Nikolai Plaksin could have been authorized “at the highest level”, believes Alyona Vorontsova, editor-in-chief of the local Tsargrad Internet channel. However, the official’s troubles will not affect the rating of the head of the Samara region, Dmitry Azarov, said Vladimir Zvonovsky, doctor of sociological sciences, chairman of the Social Research Fund, in an interview with a Notepad correspondent . Another Bloknot expert, political consultant Aleksey Komelev, disagrees with the sociologist. In his opinion, if the media and users of social networks are interested in the scandal with Plaksin, it will become a problem for the head of the region.
“Azarov’s image will also suffer if someone else from the cabinet of ministers, or from the governor’s entourage, is arrested in the Samara region,” Komelev said.
Police journalist, editor-in-chief of the Samara office of the Tsargrad Internet channel Alena Vorontsova Samara journalist Alena Vorontsova, specializing in reporting on criminal matters, claims that the arrest of Nikolai Plaksin, which occurred on his birthday (27 April, the 53-year-old minister), looks like a gross attempt to psychologically pressure the head of the Samara region construction ministry. According to Vorontsova, the Main Investigation Department (GSU) of the Main Regional Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs is engaged in the Plaksin case.
Today, according to the journalist, the head of the regional Ministry of Construction, accused of exceeding his official powers, should be transferred from the temporary detention center (IVS) on Kuibyshev Street to SIZO-1, which is on Sadovoy Proezd in Samara.
“The IVS differs from the remand center in different detention regimes,” says Vorontsova. “In addition, those who were only detained on suspicion of a crime are in the remand center, and those who are suspected and accused of breaking the law are in the remand center and have already been taken into custody by a court order.”
In a conversation with a Bloknot correspondent, the editor of the local bureau of the Internet channel Tsargrad suggested that further high-profile detentions of high-ranking officials could occur in the region in the near future.
“This is not the last arrest”, is certain Vorontsova. She does not exclude that in this way the political opponents of outgoing governor Dmitry Azarov hope to damage his reputation and prevent the politician from being elected for a new term (on September 10, the election of the head of the region will take place to the Samara region).
Azarov and the elections – 2023 Before the arrest of Mykola Plaksin, it was believed that the question of Dmitry Azarov’s second term as governor was resolved. Say, the head of the Samara region recently met with Vladimir Putin, which could mean that the country’s leader trusts him. This is also indicated by the starting pre-election line-up. Among Dmitry Azarov’s potential rivals, Bloknot’s Samara White House sources cite two names: Samara Provincial Duma Deputy Alexei Leskin (KPRF) and his colleague Mikhail Maryakhin (“A Just Russia – For the Truth! “). As for two other prominent politicians in the field – State Duma deputies Mikhail Matveev (KPRF) and Vladimir Koshelev (LDPR), then, according to Bloknot insiders, they will not participate in the race for the governor’s chair.
Political consultant Alexei Komelev “Azarov does not determine the circle of people who will run for the post of head of the Samara region,” said Vladimir Zvonovsky, chairman of the Foundation for Social Research. “Besides, neither he nor the other gubernatorial candidates decide what issues will be on the agenda in these elections. If Azarov’s nomination is approved by the administration of the President of the Russian Federation and he has no other competitors, then the results of the vote are obvious.
Zvonivsky is confident that the events around the head of the Ministry of Construction will in no way affect the confidence of voters in the head of the region.
Doctor of Sociological Sciences Vladimir Zvonovsky. Photo: Samara State University of Economics official website “Of course, if we are talking about the internal experiences of the head of the region, then I don’t know, maybe Azarov is really worried about the arrest of Plaksin,” says Vladimir Zvonovsky. “But we’re not talking about real reputational losses for the governor.”
Notepad Help:
Nikolai Plaksin was officially appointed to the post of Minister of Construction of the Samara region in September 2021. Previously, he worked as the director of the Moscow JSC “Volgatransstroy-Metro” (“VTS-Metro”). This business structure makes part of the Volgatransstroy group of companies of businessman Vyacheslav Sonin, he and his company were responsible for the construction of the Samara railway station and other landmarks in the region, as well as beyond.
Now Mr. Plaksin is suspected of illegally ordering his subordinates to issue permits for the commissioning of two Palaces of Culture built under the national “Culture” project. According to security officials, these buildings did not meet the requirements of the project documentation.
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