Krasnoyarsk City Council has revoked Sergei Shakhmatov’s mandate for breaking the anti-corruption legislation. Owning foreign assets is illegal for Russian public servants. Shakhmatov’s shares in Tesla, Apple, Pfizer, and some other foreign companies have earned him about 200 million rubles ($2,862 000). Shakhmatov called his colleagues’ decision a "cheap political spectacle." The event was reported on the city council’s website on January 31.
On January 31, Sergei Shakhmatov, a Green Party representative, was removed from the Krasnoyarsk City Council. The prosecutor's office found him in violation of the ban on owning foreign assets, stating that he had in possession shares of Tesla, Apple, Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson, Bank of New York Mellon, and some other companies. The ex-councilor's income from these assets was estimated at 200 million rubles.
The matter was debated for over an hour. 23 Council members out of 34 voted for excluding Shakhmatov. The Green Party representative said that he had asked to relieve him of his duties before the Council meeting.
"My application was not accepted for consideration. Apparently, a show trial was needed so that everyone could express their ‘righteous anger.’ Everything is quick, urgent, and in a hurry - it smells like a cheap political spectacle," Shakhmatov wrote on his page.
His seat on the City Council will be passed to another Green Party representative. Shakhmatov announced that he will focus on solving environmental problems at the federal level.
Responding to sanctions imposed on Russia, public officials began abandoning foreign brands and replacing them with domestic ones. Regional governors publicly declared not using anymore their Instagram* accounts - after it was blocked in Russian territory. An ex-mayor of Arkhangelsk, Alexander Donskoy, announced the release of an analog of Coca-Cola - "Russian Coke" with the Virgin Mary on the packaging. Kursk ombudsman Vladimir Firsov asked for replacing foreign music in shopping malls with Russian songs.
