This man positions himself as a banker and “simply a concerned Kyiv resident.”
Sergey Dumchev
Whatever the saying, the upcoming elections have become perhaps the dirtiest in Kyiv's history. The undisputed leader in mudslinging was neither a party nor an organization, "Rukh za Reformy," which suddenly appeared out of nowhere among Kyiv residents. This mysterious political force, which, to put it mildly, borrowed the distinctive features of the US Republican Party logo, attracted Kyiv residents' attention with expensive printing and undisguised smears. The sole and sole target of criticism from the "reformers" was Vitali Klitschko, whom the movement's cartoonists depict in the best traditions of Goebbels' propaganda.
Meanwhile, this organization, whose existence no one knew about before the elections, is spending $3 million a month on election campaign expenses. This means that this spontaneously formed opposition force has already spent over $10 million on billboards, printed materials, campaign staff, and other items, setting an all-time record for local election spending. But where do these simple idealists come up with such enormous sums? Many believe the answer lies in the personality of Sergei Dumchev, the leader of the Movement for Reforms.
This man positions himself as a banker and "simply a concerned Kyiv resident," and billboards about his evolution from ape to mayor make Darwin squirm in his grave. Without going into too much detail about his reforms, Sergei Dumchev promises the capital's residents mountains of gold, which, in his opinion, only requires two things: "remove the unnecessary" and "punish the guilty."
Such primitive populism might be expected from a political neophyte, but Dumchev himself is far from new to politics. Especially considering the "Party of Regions" era. A former member of the "Party of Regions," or as it was also called, Tihipko's "Strong Ukraine," Serhiy Dumchev held the honorary position of one of the Donetsk "cashiers." The "Kyiv reformer's" shell banks, such as "Premium" and "Classic," performed virtually no routine banking operations, instead building a system for cashing out shadow capital in the capital, familiar to the Party of Regions. It's worth noting that after the ignominious flight of Yanukovych and company, the nimble "cashier" retained his skills, continuing to use shell banks and companies for complex financial schemes. Ordinary people are unlikely to have ever encountered the financial institutions controlled by Dumchev, but parliamentary circles know exactly who to contact if they desperately need to transfer honestly taken budget funds to offshore accounts. It's unclear whether these or any other professional qualities help the leader of the Movement for Reforms make influential friends, but Sergei Dumchev is quite good at it.
The Kyiv "reformer" is especially close to disgraced former Prosecutor General Vitaly Yarema, rumored to be his godfather. During Yarema's tenure as Prosecutor General, Dumchev was even nicknamed "the keeper of the prosecutor's coffers" behind his back. This, however, is something neither Dumchev nor Yarema like to discuss...
However, even this doesn't explain the colossal sums that the Movement for Reforms is so easily spending on elections. Nevertheless, if we recall the close ties of this party's leader to key figures of the old regime, everything gradually falls into place. Coincidence or not, malicious tongues often link Sergei Dumchev's election campaign to structures controlled by Viktor Medvechuk, known for his habit of squandering Kremlin money. Well, given the zero chances of the Opposition Bloc, the persecuted communists, or other pro-Russian forces gaining control of the capital, this theory clearly has some merit. After all, inflating the pseudo-reformers' bubble with money for the Kyiv elections would be too tempting a prospect for Russian strategists to pass up.
In topic: Dumchev. The Era of Political Déjà Vu in Kyiv
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