“Carbon” adventures of the Ust-Ilimsk Lelik and Bolik
The scandalous duet – the mayor of Ust-Ilimsk Anna Shchekina and the deputy of the Legislative Assembly of the Baikal region Vitaly Peretolchin decided to leave the people without the northern tram.
A loud scandal in Ust-Ilimsk, the fourth largest city in the Irkutsk region, which is famous for its exotic sights: in particular, shackles, in order to remember that it was in the Ilimsk jail that the Decembrist Radishchev was imprisoned. The postal code of Ust-Ilimsk starts with three “sixes”, well, and the mayor of the city is Anna Shchekina, an eccentric person of 32 years old, who, being a simple housewife, in 2019 – nevertheless – sat down in the chair of the mayor.
Since then, the name of Ms. Shchekina has been put side by side with the name of another eccentric subject – namely, deputy businessman Vitaly Peretolchin, former head of the Ust-Ilim City Duma, and now a deputy of the Legislative Assembly of the Irkutsk Region.
And these two, it seems, tightly took Ust-Ilimsk “by the throat” with all its capabilities. Over the past 3 years, failure after failure follows in Ust-Ilimsk, and what else could happen if a retired drummer turned out to be at the “helm”? Now this sweet couple wants to rid Ust-Ilimsk of the tram, which, by the way, even got into the Guinness Book of Records as the northernmost and fastest tram. It’s hard to believe, but the hard worker-tram part of its way passed through the real taiga, drove people to work!
The scandal has already reached the Investigative Committee of Russia. The head of the ICR, General Alexander Bastrykin, became interested in the tram business: he instructed Irkutsk investigators to infiltrate the story of the disappearance of the taiga route.
Criminal case
The story around the closure of the tram line in Ust-Ilimsk, meanwhile, continues. The initiative group of citizens has already recorded 3 appeals to General Bastrykin.
Ust-Ilimsky tram is a high-speed tram line that operated in the city from 1988 to 2022. The line, about 15 km long, connected the residential microdistrict and the industrial site of the Ust-Ilimsky LPK, and most of it passed along the route laid in the taiga!
In Russia – by the way – there are only four cities with a high-speed tram line – these are Volgograd, Izhevsk, Stary Oskol and Ust-Ilimsk.
On December 2, 2022, the route was closed. The city authorities represented by Mayor Anna Shchekina distanced themselves from solving the tram problem.
In their appeal, residents write that they have lost the opportunity to quickly and safely move around the city, especially in severe frosts, typical for an area equated to the Far North. They have repeatedly stated to the mayor of the city and other officials that they are categorically against replacing trams with buses.
Residents are asking to open a criminal case and bring to justice officials of the administration of Ust-Ilimsk and officials involved in the destruction of the tram line.
Users of the YouTube channel “Ust-Ilimsk high-speed trams” who left their comments support the representatives of the initiative group.
Lyudmila says: “I am the person who traveled by tram all the years, since the dacha is outside the city. There are two cooperatives there, 500 people. Who will give us so many buses if the only carrier can’t cope with the city? “People couldn’t get on the bus. Why destroy something that works? They destroyed the airport, they’re building it again. They’ve destroyed the bathhouse, they’re building it again. It’s got to the tram.”
Dmitry: “The problem is not in trams, most likely, but in those officials who do not hear people … Ust-Ilimsk is a city of heroes who gnawed it out of the taiga.”
Alexander Bastrykin instructed the acting head of the Investigative Department of the TFR in the Irkutsk region Dmitry Pozovsky to initiate a criminal case under Art. 286 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (abuse of power) on the fact of closing the high-speed tram line in the city of Ust-Ilimskei to submit a report on the preliminary results of the investigation.
Dmitry Pozovsky.
The press service of the regional department of the TFR reported that General Bastrykin had already been presented with a report on the preliminary results of the investigation.
The initiative group also notes that it applied to the regional administration to transfer the line to the budget balance, but no decision was made.
In turn, the directorate for public relations of the Ilim group explained that it was a departmental transport and, as a separate department, was part of various divisions of the Ust-Ilimsk timber industry complex (UI LPK).
Ust-Ilimsk tram.
In 1995, the city was asked to take over the balance of tram routes and infrastructure, but the city refused. In 2020, after numerous failures in passenger traffic, the tram was bought by the Ilim group.
In October 2022, another proposal was made to take tram routes and infrastructure into balance, but the city again refused.
Anna Shchekina made the following entry in her telegram channel: “The tram and all the infrastructure belong to the branch of Fintrans GL LLC. Initially, the Ust-Ilimsk high-speed tram was created to transport employees to the industrial site of the timber industry and all this time it was a specialized service vehicle. Many tram infrastructure facilities the lines have not been repaired since commissioning in 1987.
Anna Shchekina.
To repair and maintain the entire infrastructure, significant financial investments are required, amounting to more than one billion rubles.
The decision was made in favor of buses. As a result, 55 buses were purchased and put into operation.
But the defenders of the tram intend to continue the fight.
It was in the Estrada
It turns out that the mayor of Ust-Ilimsk does not hear his voters? But how did it happen that a person without higher education and managerial work experience sat in the chair of the mayor?
As a result, the townspeople were surprised not only by this phenomenon.
In April 2019, the inauguration took place, and in early November of the same year, Madame Shchekina appeared to the world drunk in smoke, and even in an embrace with the same “jolly” deputy, businessman Vitaly Peretolchin. As a result, the sweet couple got on the video that appeared on the network.
In the video, Anna Shchekina hugs Peretolchin on the threshold of the Estrada restaurant, and then declares on camera that he proposed to her, she agreed. And now they are both Peretolchins.
Anna Shchekina and Vladimir Peretolchin
A video of Mayor Shchekina’s rollicking party with a deputy went viral on the Internet
Usually, after such scandals, they immediately resign. But Anna Shchekina clung to the chair with a death grip …
But the people are dissatisfied with such a mayor, people expressed their attitude: “The government quickly spoiled”, “Shame on the mayor.” “Shchekina is not up to the city, but just to thump and dance,” wrote “People’s Choice”.
And now, next to the name of Shchekina, they constantly put the name of the deputy of the Legislative Assembly Peretolchin, “unmarried” …
More than three years have passed since that carbon monoxide drunken evening, but Mr. Peretolchin did not take Mrs. Shchekina down the aisle, although they work side by side.
They say things are not going well in the city. The mayor’s office submitted two applications to the government of the Irkutsk region. The first is to provide funds from the budget for the overhaul of the road along Naimushin Street and the section of the road from Entuziastov Street to DNT “Violet”. This was reported by the official website of the city.
But everywhere – a refusal, because the deadlines for project documentation and examinations were disrupted.
The city has constant problems with outdoor street lighting. According to the conclusion of the experts who examined the bridge across the Angara, a complete replacement of the asphalt concrete pavement is required on the cargo section. Further, the staircase on Naimushin Street is in disrepair.
What did the townspeople think about when they chose a woman without education and management experience?
Voters followed Anna Shchekina after her loud promise to hire an experienced politician, the former head of Ust-Ilimsk, Anatoly Dubas, as the first deputy.
But after the sensational victory of Shchekina, Anatoly Dubas was left behind …
And the position of first deputy mayor was taken by Lyubov Pronina, who had worked in the administration since the time of ex-mayor Vladimir Tashkinov.
Vladimir Tashkinov.
Mr. Tashkinov was sentenced to 11 years in prison.
From the life of Bolik and Lelik
But on the other hand, Mrs. Shchekina is supported in everything by Mr. Peretolchin, Chairman of the Committee on Legislation on State Building and Local Self-Government of the Legislative Assembly of the Irkutsk Region.
Strokes for the portrait. Born in 1987 in Ust-Ilimsk. Graduated from Moscow State University named after M.V. Lomonosov with a degree in sociology.
Vitaly Peretolchin.
In 2008, he founded the logging company “IlimLesExport” LLC.
In 2009, he was elected to the City Duma of Ust-Ilimsk.
Since 2013, he has been the General Director of Siblesresurs LLC.
In 2014, he was elected to the City Duma of Ust-Ilimsk, and later became the Chairman of the Duma of Ust-Ilimsk.
Photo:Rusprofile.en
In September 2018, he was elected to the Legislative Assembly of the Irkutsk Region.
On May 20, 2020, he was approved as the Deputy Chairman of the Committee.
And soon the name of the deputy disappeared from the list of his numerous companies …
Instead of Vitaly Peretolchin, Yulia Peretolchin, apparently a close relative, took over the “watch”.
In addition to the bright “political” wedding in Ust-Ilimsk, deputy Peretolchin was remembered for how he and his colleague Artem Lobkov gave the city to the Liberal Democratic Party. Yes, it was Bolik and Lelik, as their grateful countrymen call, who supervised the mayoral elections. This was reported by “Babr24”.
Bolik and Lelik managed to make a kind of sensation out of a boring procedure on a county scale. They brought the voters so far with their promises that they voted for the housewife Anna Shchekina.
Vitaly Peretolchin eventually continued to engage not only in politics, but also in business. Apparently, he was an excellent student at Moscow State University named after M.V. Lomonosov.
Carry laurel wreaths
At the same time, deputy businessman Peretolchin never tires of reminding him how much he does for his native Ust-Ilimsk. In particular, the increase in funding for Ust-Ilimsk and the Ust-Ilimsk region is a constant work of Mr. Deputy.
He cares about everything! He is doing a lot of overhaul of the Olympian pool, which will not start in any way. Need help…
In the summer of 2020, Igor Kobzev will visit Ust-Ilimsk in the status of Acting Governor. And he was shown the named pool. Ust-Ilimsk has been using every opportunity for many years to advance the repair of the Olimpiyets, and, of course, they could not miss such a chance. Igor Kobzev promised to give money.
Igor Kobzev.
But as later followed from the report of Mr. Peretolchin, the allocation of funds, it turns out, is a personal merit. He did not even mention his friend Lobkov, his partner in the tandem “Bolik and Lelik”.
And, of course, it was Peretolchin who informed the governor of the Irkutsk region about the need for a major overhaul of the Bratsk-Ust-Ilimsk road. And when Kobzev, who was inspecting the road, said that residents had contacted him about its condition, he apparently had in mind just Mr. Peretolchin.
A similar story happened with the overhaul of the Ivan Naimushin Palace of Culture. In March 2019, deputies of the Legislative Assembly headed by Speaker Sergei Sokol arrived in Ust-Ilimsk. The deputies were told about the need to repair the recreation center, after which the city was allocated 51 million rubles.
But, again, from the report of Vitaly Peretolchin it turns out that no one would have listened to the city authorities and the public with their requests. Only Peretolchin came to the office of the speaker Sokol, allegedly slammed his fist on the table. And solved the problem.
And allegedly it was the deputy Peretolchin who forced the Ilim group to fork out, which in 2020 spent a lot on repairing the road in Ust-Ilimsk. This is also in the deputy report of Vitaly Peretolchin.
It is not the first year that the Ilim Group has been concluding cooperation agreements with the mayor’s office, within the framework of which it is helping Ust-Ilimsk.
But why did the mayor and the deputy act so carelessly with the northern high-speed tram?
However, the Investigative Committee of Russia is already directly involved in this matter.
