KRYVYI RIH, Ukraine - Supporters of incumbent Kryvyi Rih Mayor Yury Vilkul have disrupted last-ditch efforts by the city's election commission that could have led to a recount in the Nov. 15 mayoral run-off election.
The commission’s
latest meeting on the night of Dec. 2 was accompanied by scuffles, violent
standoffs, a bomb threat and an electricity blackout.
The challenger, Yury
Milobog from the pro-European Samopomich party, argues that his opponent, a member of the Opposition Bloc and former
ally of disgraced ex-President Viktor Yanukovych, won by rigging the vote.
According to the
official results, Vilkul won with 49.25 percent and by a margin of 752 votes.
The Dnipropetrovsk Administrative Court of
Appeals on Nov. 30 ordered district commissions in six districts of Kryvyi Rih
to consider a recount of the vote at hospitals.
Opposition Bloc representatives disrupting an election commission meeting late on Dec. 2.
On the same day, the
Kryvyi Rih city commission, where pro-European parties have a majority,
disbanded the district commissions, which are dominated by Vilkul supporters.
They ignored the decision and held overnight meetings at which they decided not
to recount the votes.
Vilkul supporters
seemed to have scored another victory when the Kryvyi Rih election commission
on Dec. 2 received an order from the Central Election Commission to form new
district commissions and to consider Milobog’s complaints against district commissions’ rejection of recount proposals by midnight.
The entire mayoral
election process was to be completed by midnight, Dec. 2-3, the Central
Election Commission said.
As a result, the
Kryvyi Rih commission had very little time to create new district commissions
and to consider Milobog’s complaints, and had to schedule a late-night meeting
for 10 p.m.
At this time,
representatives of the Opposition Bloc entered the room where the commission
was working. They included Dmytro Kolesnikov, Konstantyn Pavlov and Andriy Halchenko
– all partisan members of parliament – as well as Maryna Akimova, an aide to
Vilkul, and an assistant to Kolesnikov.
Opposition Bloc representatives disrupting an election commission meeting late on Dec. 2.
The Opposition Bloc lawmakers
unsuccessfully attempted to serve commission members summons to a court hearing
on their complaint against the commission’s actions. They engaged in loud
disputes and scuffles with members of the commission.
Akimova and the
Kolesnikov aide were shouting loudly for about two hours and attempted to break
into the room, arguing that they were journalists and presenting their journalist
credentials.
The Opposition Bloc
representatives “were preventing the Kryvyi Rih city commission, including by the
use of physical force” from holding its meeting for two hours, the Kryvyi Rih
commission wrote in a letter to the Central Election Commission. The Kyiv Post
has a copy of the letter.
They “snatched the
meeting’s agenda and other documents out of the (commission) secretary’s
hands,” the letter reads.
The Opposition Bloc maintained
its party members’ actions were legitimate.
Moreover, at about 10
p.m. the police arrived and announced there was a bomb threat at City Hall,
trying to persuade commission members to leave the building.
Subsequently
electricity in the whole building was turned off, and the commission continued
its work with flashlights.
Milobog supporters
argued that the bomb threat and the blackout were efforts by Vilkul’s
proponents to disrupt the commission meeting. Vilkul supporters deny this.
Meanwhile, supporters
of Milobog eventually entered through the windows and brought flashlights and
electricity cables. Some of them stood by the door to protect the commission
from Opposition Bloc representatives.
As a result of the
disturbances, the Kryvyi Rih commission failed to make any substantial decisions
before the midnight deadline. It sent a letter to the Central Election
Commission asking it to extend the deadline.
The Central Election
Commission did not reply to a request for comment.
Opposition Bloc representatives disrupting an election commission meeting late on Dec. 2.
“As soon as I left
Kryvyi Rih, demons raised their heads there,” Yegor Sobolev, a Verkhovna Rada
member from Samopomich, wrote on Facebook on Dec. 3. “There is one fundamental
reason for the Vilkul family’s attempts to make a comeback – the current
national authorities don’t want to punish them for their past crimes and are allowing them to commit new ones.”
The turmoil followed
a Nov. 29 rally at which pro-Milobog protesters took over the first floor of
Kryvyi Rih’s City Hall.
Milobog’s complaints
on voting fraud are currently being investigated by the police and a Verkhovna Rada commission.
Leonid Yemets, the chairman
of the commission, told the Kyiv Post that parliament had the right to order a
recount if it deemed it necessary. The commission is expected to make its
conclusions next week, he said.
“I believe (the commission’s) position is
unified,” Yemets told Channel 5 on Dec. 3. “Some members are sincere, and some
hide their position but everyone sees that certain violations took place
(during the vote).”
The police refusing to let election commission members into the City Hall building late on Dec. 2.
Kyiv Post staff writer
Oleg Sukhov can be reached at [email protected].
