Owners of Jaguars and samovar collectors. Who came to the Kyiv City Council

Owners of Jaguars and samovar collectors. Who came to the Kyiv City Council

Tomorrow,1 December, the first session of the new convocation of the Kyiv City Council will take place. At it the "old" deputies will hand over power to the new ones.

"Vesti" sorted out how this composition differs.

A bet on "one of our own"

At the first session they usually present mandates to the mayor and deputies. But the main thing — the mayor must propose a candidate for his deputy on the city council — the secretary of the Kyiv City Council, a position for which, as "Vesti" learned, many factions are vying. And it’s clear why. The second person in the Kyiv City Council, and effectively in the city, has very large powers.

"The secretary of the Kyiv City Council not only chairs meetings in the mayor’s absence, as Oles Dovhyi did under Chernovetsky or Volodymyr Prokopiv under Klitschko. He heads the Kyiv City Council secretariat, communicates with all factions, controls the agenda, the order and the unscheduled nature of issues. And if the faction he represents suddenly goes into opposition to the mayor, Klitschko will not be able to control him, since the secretary has his own party leadership. We have many worthy and experienced candidates, but negotiations are ongoing," a source in European Solidarity explains to us.

Within UDAR, Klitschko is keeping the intrigue and says they are negotiating with all factions about a coalition and the secretary of the City Council, but confirm: "We are betting on one of our own. We are a party with big ambitions, and we have many deputies whose qualifications allow them to occupy this position," sources in UDAR say.

According to a "Vesti" source in UDAR, by Sunday evening the party favored a coalition with European Solidarity. "We occupy the same niche, and it’s logical to unite with them. Besides, ES has more muscle. But they are in opposition to Bankova. And that’s a problem. And if we 'respect' the Servants, they also want the secretary, which looks like a mockery with their 12 mandates. Also, forming a coalition with 'crumbs' of parties is generally not proper," the source says.

As "Vesti" reported, an earlier coalition option discussed was: UDAR + Servant of the People + Holos + four deputies from Batkivshchyna + 6 deputies from OPZZh. Recall that the Kyiv City Council elected deputies: from ES — 31; UDAR — 30; "Yednist" — 14; OPZZh, Batkivshchyna, Servant of the People — 12 each; from Holos — 9.

"Ideally, the coalition issue, which, by the way, the law does not obligate to create, could be resolved on 1 December if everyone agrees. If not — we’ll decide on 3 December. And anyway there is still time until 20 December," a source in the Kyiv City Council secretariat tells us.

From 20 to 82

The current Kyiv City Council has very wide age ranges. The youngest deputy, Yaryna Aryeva from European Solidarity, is only 20 years old. She is a student at Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv and, according to the father of MP Volodymyr Ariev, an ES activist. The "oldest" deputy is 82 years old. That is the leader of Yednist and two-time mayor of the capital, Oleksandr Omelchenko.

In total, deputies from 20 to 30 years old inclusive number 11. Besides Aryeva, these include the cultural organizer of the Brovary Center for Patriotic Youth Education Olga Chaika (ES); entrepreneur Volodymyr Kravets (OPZZh); volunteer with "Army SOS" Alina Mykhailova (Holos); head of the party secretariat Dinara Khabibullaeva (ES); director of the legal department of UM Ti Kompani Yurii Fedorenko (Servant of the People); director of Ego-Group Yevhen Kuzmenko (Servant of the People); assistant at an NAU department Kseniia Semenova (Servant of the People); assistant at the National University of Bioresources department Dmytro Kalinichenko and deputy director of Avstral company Maksym Makarenko — both from UDAR.

15 deputies are aged 50+, including Omelchenko. These are individual entrepreneur Volodymyr Yalovyi (OPZZh), chairman of the supervisory board of the Furshet chain Ihor Balenko (ES), former head of the Kyiv City State Administration Oleksandr Popov (OPZZh), former MP Roman Romaniuk (UDAR), manager of affairs of Kyivgorstroy HC Yurii Zubko (Batkivshchyna), director of programs of the Group of Strategic Studies Anatolii Shapoval (Batkivshchyna), head of the Poroshenko Foundation Maryna Poroshenko (ES), political scientist Serhii Taran (ES), deputy director of Frukton Trade Oleksandr Mishchenko (ES), lawyer Ihor Kyrylenko (OPZZh), lawyer Rustem Akhmetov (OPZZh), former head of the Kyiv UBOB division Oleksandr Pluzhnyk (OPZZh), owner of several food establishments in Hydropark Olena Ovramenko (UDAR), deputy head of the KCSA Viacheslav Nepop (UDAR). The others are from 31 to 50 years old.

Official millionaires

There are official millionaires in the current Kyiv City Council. One of the richest is the former first lady Maryna Poroshenko, who may head the ES faction in the City Council. In 2019 year her husband, the former president of Ukraine, declared income of 773 million UAH (about $30 million at the exchange rate on 2019), of which 606 million UAH were dividends from the investment fund Prime Assets Capital. Another 33 million and 84 thousand UAH he earned from the sale of shares of the International Investment Bank, and 6 million 185 thousand UAH was compensation for moral damages from the BBC for spreading inaccurate information. In bank accounts and cash, the Poroshenko family had in 2019: $52,810 million, about 411 million UAH (approximately $15 million) and €16,6 thousand.

More than $5 million, of which $3 million he lent out, are declared in the accounts of the chairman of the supervisory board of the Furshet chain Ihor Balenko (ES). In cash he has €900 thousand and about 10 million UAH. He also lent 30 million UAH as interest-free financial assistance to several legal entities.

A full $5,2 million "lent to third parties," according to the declaration, was listed by Vagan Tovmasian, founder and owner of a number of companies and organizations (Yednist). In cash he holds $100 thousand and 5 million UAH.

Also a millionaire is the former mayor of the capital Oleksandr Omelchenko. Almost $2 million (53,7 million UAH) is owed to him, according to the declaration, by MONA LLC. He has about $900 thousand on accounts, plus another 5 million in national currency.

More than $2 million was lent by deputy director of Stugna LLC Vadym Ivanchenko (Yednist). In cash he holds about $100 thousand and approximately 1,5 million UAH.

Another millionaire in Yednist is the chairman of the supervisory board of ASVIO Bank JSC Roman Yaroshenko. He has over $1,5 million in accounts and more than 11 million UAH. He has also taken loans totalling nearly 60 million UAH.

Lovers of land

Among the new deputies there are landowners. The most plots — about 30 — belong to deputy director of Kyivvodokanal Joint-Stock Company Vadym Storozhuk (ES); they are located in Kyiv region, and their total area is more than 8 ha. In second place is Oleh Kostiushko from ES. The former director of the Ukrainian Environmental Alliance association, specializing in waste management, owns 7 ha in Kyiv and Chernihiv regions.

Almost 5 ha was declared by Oleksandr Omelchenko. These are several plots in Karabachyn and Brusyliv in Zhytomyr region, where he has a house, a garden cottage and apiaries. Ihor Balenko (ES) has seven plots with a total area of more than 4 ha in Kyiv, Sukholuchchia, Kozyn in Kyiv region and in Zhytomyr region. Marina Poroshenko and Andrii Zaderieiko (ES) have 3 ha each. Maryna Anatoliivna is the official owner of a house with annexes in Kozyn of more than 1000 sq. m, where the former president’s family lives, as well as a house with land in Boryspil district of Kyiv region. Zaderieiko, an employee of the municipal Research Institute of Socio-Economic Development of the City, has 3 ha in the village of Myrovska in Kaharlyk district.

Almost 13 ha in Makariv district of Kyiv region belonged to the well-known Kyiv developer Denys Moskal (head of the Batkivshchyna faction), but, judging by the latest declaration, he successfully sold it for 19,76 million UAH, leaving himself a "modest" 2,6 ha.

More than 2 ha are also owned by Volodymyr Yalovyi of OPZZh — near Kyiv and in Zakarpattia. However, all plots from 0,05 to 0,12 ha are officially registered to his wife Larysa Mykolaivna.

Officially unemployed

We found five such people among the newly elected. These are, for example, ATO volunteer — paramedic of the first separate assault company of the DUK PS Alina Mykhailova. Head of NGO Sprava Hromad, ATO/OOS veteran Oleksandr Suprun (ES) is also not listed anywhere. Participant of ATO/OOS Oleksandr Pohrebyskyi (ES) is also officially not working.

Interestingly, Kyiv mayor’s advisor Myroslava Smyrnova is also officially not employed, as is UDAR activist and founder of the NGO My Kyyany Olesia Zubrytska.

Lovers of the beautiful

Among the elected of Kyiv residents there are many lovers of the beautiful. For example, Petro Poroshenko is known for his collection of paintings, because of which he even became the subject of a case initiated by NABU. In summer, Maryna and Petro Poroshenko exhibited 43 paintings by world-famous artists at the Honchar Museum. But the exhibition was stormed by the State Bureau of Investigations’ special forces. The reason — suspicion of illegal movement of works across the border.

Volodymyr Yalovyi of OPZZh declared a collection of 47 paintings by Ukrainian and Russian 20th-century artists, as well as a library of 350 books. Anatolii Shapoval declared a library of 3000 books published in the late 19th — early 21st centuries, as well as a collection of rushnyky, vyshyvankas and paintings.

Oleh Kostiushko collects antique samovars. Ihor Balenko collects designer furniture, and his wife, singer Assia Akhat, collects jewelry.

By the way, Maryna Poroshenko declared several sets of branded furniture and jewelry. She may be rivaled by Olena Ovramenko, who also has a huge jewelry collection.

Also in the former first lady’s declaration is a famous pink leather handbag by Fendi for 109 thousand UAH and a car rare for politicians — a Jaguar, although for some reason its declared value is comparable to a budget foreign car — 454 thousand UAH.

And the flamboyant former head of the State Customs Service of Ukraine Maksym Nefedov declared intellectual property. As stated in the declaration, this is the copyright to the "literary work ProZorro. Making the impossible in Ukrainian government." But the ex-official is even better known for his "collection" of scandals. One of them — an erotic dance with a stripper in the elite club Queen, where he poured wax on the dancer’s body. Another — exporting medical masks through customs at the start of the epidemic. And Nefedov compared cardiac surgeon Borys Todurov to the notorious Nazi doctor-sadist Josef Mengele.