The choice of the watchman as a protest: why the head of Novoomsky could not be re-elected

The correspondent of the Gorod55 newspaper visited the Novoomsky settlement to find out why the watchman was elected head. For example, a longtime acquaintance of the current head Arthur Len (holds the post since 2006) believes that he did a lot for the village, was not a corrupt official, but arrogance ruined him. “He has become like a king here, you can't communicate with people like that”, - he said.

There are ten deputies in Novoomskoye. Two agreed to talk to the journalist - self-nominated candidate Alexander Dozhikov and communist Ivan Kaplyuchenko. They believe that the 66-year-old watchman Nadezhda Chekmaryova was a technical candidate and, most likely, was declared for the election at the suggestion of the current head of the settlement.

In total, five candidates were nominated for the elections, but two were removed due to errors in the declarations, and one more - the director of the local economic department Natalya Pekai - was refused without a clear explanation. All members of the competition committee voted against her. That is why, according to the deputies, a protest vote happened - 6 out of 10 votes went to the watchman, and not the current head Len. The deputies were against uncontested voting. This is what Novoomskoe calls the choice between the acting head and the “sployer” watchman. By the way, party affiliation did not play a role - seven out of ten deputies are representatives of United Russia.

“We were simply not given a choice. They pushed us as much as possible to select the current head. We thought it was humiliation”, - said the deputy Dozhdikov.

According to him, after the announcement of the voting results, everyone was shocked, since such an outcome of the elections was not even expected - Chekmaryova was presented to the deputies 5 minutes before the election process. After the victory, she was told to write a resignation. At the same time, Len himself was calm, say those present at the elections.

“There was shock in my eyes. The deputies, who were on the side of the head, raised their voices, shouted: "This is sabotage!"...

At the same time, Dozhdikov says that before the election, none of the deputies had heard that they were going to support the current head of the village. According to him, most of the employees of the local administration "have the same opinion", since Len behaves incorrectly, allowing him to raise his voice to subordinates.

“Many people here are afraid to speak. Until now, the reaction is: "Here, we have been disgraced throughout the country." Such an attitude as if something very terrible happened. Although, in my opinion, it is positive that we defended our point of view, did not follow the lead”, - the deputy stressed.

As for Pekai, who was not admitted to the elections, who could well have won and become the head of the village, she often has to solve the problems of residents instead of Lena. For example, when in October an accident occurred on the water supply system in Novoomskoye - silt got into the pumping system, and mud came out of the taps - it was she who knocked out a car for the supply of clean water at the weekend at the neighboring Troitsky settlement.

The deputies believe that Pekai and the competition commission were under pressure from the local administration. She herself also confirmed this information to the Gorod55 correspondent. According to Pekai, the head summoned her to him and persistently asked her to think about whether to go to the polls. And then they began to write out disciplinary sanctions for her - for those problems that were not solved through no fault of her. The chairman of the competition committee, Viktor Chumakov, openly told Pekai that Len would work for another term, but in the next elections she would allegedly be allowed to participate.

“But in the protocol, they refused to indicate the reason they told me. They wrote that all the members of the commission allegedly voted against me. This, of course, is insulting”, - says Pekai.

At the same time, she plans to apply for re-election. Pekai is not afraid to lose her place in the administration, as she is confident in the support of the local population.

The journalist of the "Gorod55" publication was unable to communicate with the elected head of the settlement Chekmaryova. Deputy Dozhdikov suggests that after the elections she could have been instructed not to comment. Even a relative working in a local store did not see Chekmaryova after the vote. “I was shocked when I found out. I refused, probably because of the age. Why I went, I don't even know. I can't say whose tricks it is”, - she said. By the way, Chekmaryova has already submitted an application to resign from the post of the head of Novoomsky.

Pekai believes that Len asked to take part in the elections. But, according to the official, the watchman did not realize that in the end everything could have happened the way it happened. “I honestly feel sorry for Nadezhda Ivanovna that she found herself in such a situation. The person is very kind and helpful. Everyone speaks of her very positively, they love her at school. Many gloat, make a reference to the fact that she is a watchman. But everyone can be nominated here”, - Pekai noted.

Len also does not comment on the election results. Deputy Dozhdikov says that the systemic problem of local authorities is the inability to communicate with the population. “The Council of the Settlement for People was a body that is located somewhere in space, makes some incomprehensible decisions - no one knows. The situation is complete isolation from people”, -he stressed.

About 6 thousand people live in the Novoomsky rural settlement. It is located about 10 minutes from the city. The settlement could develop due to the influx of residents of Omsk, who buy plots for the construction of cottages. But due to the lack of gasification, there are not so many applicants.

“The village does not leave a very favorable impression. Of course, it compares favorably with the average Omsk village, there is a minimum of infrastructure: a large school, a kindergarten, even a technical school, a hospital, a church, a stadium, enough shops, including supermarkets. But do not forget that this is a large village in the suburban area. Due to its location, it has great potential that is little used. There could be an influx of wealthy city dwellers who can afford a country house. This would entail both business development and taxes. Accordingly, conditions are needed: comfortable recreation areas, playgrounds, normal roads. And there is still no gas there, they are burning with coal”, - Yekaterina Chaplinskaya, a correspondent for the Gorod55 publication, who has visited the village, told Novy Izvestia.

Also, according to her, there are many complaints about roads, water quality, lack of places to stay - there is not a single, even seedy, cafe. “Despite its proximity to the city, the village looks quite rustic. But to say that everything is completely bad is also impossible. The existing infrastructure is maintained and the roads are cleaned. There are many "prosperous" houses, people, apparently, do not live in poverty", - the journalist added.

Chaplinskaya noted that the opinions of local residents differ regarding the head of the settlement. “Some criticize: it does nothing “for the state farm”, there is no gas. Others are happy with everything, the existing problems are not connected with the head. But many want change. In what exactly they should be expressed is not entirely clear, people are expressed abstractly. Those who are more versed in realities say that you can start small: more actively apply for state programs, knock out money for repairs and improvement. The main problem seems to be the lack of activity of the local administration, which, moreover, is cut off from the population. Many do not like the behavior of the head - rude, arrogant. People understand that with him one cannot count on noticeable improvements, he copes with what is, to which he is already accustomed. And people want something more”, - she concluded.

Let us recall that this is not the first such story. So, in September 2020, cleaning lady Marina Udgodskaya won the elections for the head of the Povalikhinsky settlement in the Kostroma region, bypassing the head of United Russia Nikolay Loktev. She also voted as a technical candidate. However, the locals preferred her. After that, the cleaning lady was nominated as a candidate for the Nobel Prize and invited her to run for the State Duma.

Ella Pamfilova, chairman of the Russian Central Election Commission, considers these examples to be a positive trend. “This is a barometer of people's social and political well-being, people are active and aware. Whom they trust is chosen. This is a good “wake-up call” for all politicians elected to certain positions, who must understand that you cannot go far on promises alone now”, - she said.