Tabloid continues exposing the lifestyles of Ukrainian elites, who proudly divorce themselves from the country’s living standards.
As thousands of Ukrainians lose their subsistence jobs and consumer confidence plunges to its 8-year low, Ukraine’s giant income distribution gap becomes ever more visible.
President Yushchenko’s call for frugality goes only so far.
In fact, it clearly falls on deaf ears when it comes to the President's entourage, including his protégé Leonid “Kosmos” Chernovetsky, the Mayor of Kyiv.
Most interpersonal communication occurs in nonverbal mode, of which clothing makes up a large share. So when a person who professes noblesse oblige puts on a $40K coat to meet and greet homeless children, what does he communicate?
Tabloid estimates the Mayor's entire Zilli collection at Hr. 450,000-500,000, or $62,155-69,061 at the current official exchange rate.
This equals the amount that the City Hall allocated in May for utility bill subsidies to underprivileged Kyivites.
Sources:
http://tabloid.pravda.com.ua/brand/4935708f1005e/
http://www.gfk-geomarketing.com/fileadmin/newsletter/pressrelease/purchasing_power_europe_2008_2009.html
http://kontrakty.com.ua/show/ukr/print_article/34/47200811242.html
http://www.bank.gov.ua/KURS/last_kurs1.htm
http://lucl.lucl.kiev.ua/arxiv/arxiv2008/t1.html
Photos courtesy of Tabloid and Dmytro Amidov of the Kyiv City Hall press service
Wednesday, December 03, 2008
Caring for the Poor — Wearing $40K Coats
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There is an old Ukrainian saying that my grandmother used to tell me:
обіцяв кожух - теплі його слова
"he promised a coat - his words were warm"
Meaning, of course, that the promise was all the person got instead of a coat.
I think we can all agree that noone begrudges the wealth of a person who has obtained it by honest work and by his/her own industry.
The problem comes when a thug like Chernovetsky, corrupt to the core, pretends to be charitable, and makes sure that there are plenty of cameras to note that the "milk of human kindness flows through his veins."
Exactly what did he do for these kids, or anyone homeless?
And why are there cameras around to record his "good works"?
Doesn't this make people in Ukraine puke?
Charitable works are fine, of course, and so are honest charitable institutions.
But why are there homeless people, why are there homeless kids in Ukraine in the first place?
Has the "kosmonaut" thought about that?
Chernovetsky just bought an old car, purportedly formerly owned by a commie party boss (Shcherbytsky) at the city of Kyiv's car auction for $1.5 million - again, making sure that there were plenty of cameras around.
Why did he not just donate that amount to charity?
Unbloodybelievable!
In Spanish there is a saying: 'Ceasar's wife must not only be good, but must appear to be good'. I'm not sure about the English translation, but I'm pretty sure you can get the idea.
I'm starting to think that our countries are very much alike than what we could imagine.
¡Saludos!
Elmer,
You hit the nail on the charitable head!
He actually paid Hr. 1.5M for that Shcherbytsky relic. Obviously, he wanted the biggest bang for his charitable buck.
Cat,
It’s business as usual! Good to see you again!
Gabriela,
We do have a lot in common. Extraterrestrials did not visit Peru only:)
You are right, Taras, it's hryvnia. And it's still a chunk of change.
Gabriela, "Caesar's wife" is not just limited to Spain. Even Shakespeare wrote about it.
In Ukraine, however, the so-called "political elite" don't appear to care if they look like bloody whores, much less Caesar's wife.
Kosmonaut boy, Chernovetsky, thinks that somehow all of his showmanship reflects positively on him.
He has no clue what being a human being is all about.
His motto is "steal all you can - give a few crumbs to the poor."
He has no clue that the form of government that he represents is actually what keeps people down.
Actually, check that - he does. And that's the way he wants to keep it. Buy votes, keep using government to steal via land grab schemes and other schemes, throw a few crumbs to the poor while making sure to pose in front of cameras.
well, lookie here.
Chernovetsky wants to do a Robin Hood act - he's going to raise rents in "elite" apartments in Kyiv in order to "subsidize" utlity services for the poor.
Setting rents by the city government is a bizzare way to do business.
Rents are posted below, based on the number of floors in the building. Bizarre.
http://www.kyivpost.com/city/31787
In February 2007, the municipal administration raised the rents by 1.8-2 times as of December 2006.
The rent is UAH 1.1 per square meter for houses with over 12 floors; UAH 1.05 for houses up to 12 floors and UAH 0.86 for houses without lifts.
So, the Mayor of Kiev is a thief?
What does he look like?
Well, most political leaders around the world wear more or less expensive clothes. About that, there is nothing extrordinary. For some, even the public budget forsees expenditures for public representation.
If this mayor shows himself as modest or saving in favour of poorer people, then it is up to the electorate to elect next time another mayor.
Ukrainian officials, politicians, and oligarchs wear some of the world’s most expensive clothes and watches while Ukraine ranks as Europe’s next-to-last poorest country.
If you read more about this Mayor, you will see that nothing сould be further from modesty.
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