Mariupol did not surrender to Akhmetov. What is behind the election failure in the frontline city? Part 2

October 26, 2015

Mariupol did not surrender to Akhmetov. What is behind the election failure in the frontline city? Part 1

By that time the comfortless  venue of the printing house, not refurbished since the time of the Soviet Union, had turned into a place of pilgrimage. It seemed that all Mariupol volunteers and activists, at that time — candidates from the parties, came there.

They were vigorously discussing the plan of actions: to reprint the ballots, to recount them, how to find the second set, where it could be if it existed.

At that time the territorial election commission had sent the statement to the Central Commission and they were nervously waiting for the decision of Kyiv.

Nikolay Tokarskiy, “Priazovskiy Rabochiy” editor-in-chief and the printing house director, with  drooping shoulders and sad eyes of a St. Bernard dog, was walking among the people present. The situation resembled the one in the film «Garage».

Mykola Tokarskiy, «Priazovskiy Rabochiy» printing house director

Tokarskiy was being asked questions by various people all the time, sometimes not politely. He was reminded that in May 2014 he supported separatists.
When Mykola Tokarskiy was asked, “Why are there the misprinted ballots?», he chanted, «My printers corrected the mistake and printed correct ballots. I don't know why the misprinted ones were not  destroyed: maybe, because of negligence, mayby, someone brought them. The place has been like a thoroughfare for three day. The commission members have been here”.

Volunteer Halyna Odnorih, candidate from BYT, interrupted him, “He is brazenly lying. I called the police. There were no members of the commission here”. 

According to the rules, the printing house director gets models with seals from the territorial election commission. The process of printing, ballot counting, and packaging should be controlled by the members of the commission. However, on October 16, when the printing started, the pollice surrounded the building and nobody was let in, even the territorial commission members.

Volunteer Odnorih has always been a ball-breaker. That night she tried to get inside the printing house by car; that is why she has been criminally prosecuted, allegedly for runnung over a policeman.

The witnesses of the accident are sure that was a provocation on the part of the police.

On the “day of silence”, Halyna played one of the key roles. She repeated, “Don't sign the records. Don't succumb to the pressure on the part of the territorial commission. Don't violate the law”.

Stage producer Olha Novikova, founder of “Kity” film festival, looked at that with tired eyes; she seemed to burst into tears any moment. She signed, “I have come across so many undercover games, that I pray to God for not being elected to the city council”. When she was asked why, Olha, candidate from the “Partiya Prostykh Lyudey” (“Party of Common People”),  looked away.

Her active neighbour started to explain, “Her party said that they won't send representatives to territorial commissions. Then it occured that everywhere represebtatives of the “Partiya Prostykh Lyudey” are “Metinvest” people. It may happen that representatives of other parties will be from “Metinvest”.

Another member of the commission added, “On Friday, the radical Party allegedly withdrew its members, and head of the commission Yuryna tried to replace them with «Metinvest» lawyers — Oleksandr Dyatchenko and Oleksiy Tomashkov”.

Yuriy Ternavskiy, a real candidate for the position of the mayor

Later Petro Ovcharenko, head of the city organization of the “Radical Party”, claimed that he had not signed any papers  for the Central Election Commission asking to replace his party's representatives, so he applied to the police.

Mayoral candidate Yuriy Ternavskiy, atop a chair, agitated, “We should not allow the counter-revolution to take place. If we surrender to “Metinvest”, the city will turn into depressive Detroit. You know the situation with «Metinvest» contractors: they are not paid money for months”.
A bit later, commenting on the election to “The Ukrayinska Pravda” correspondent, he confessed that he was worrying not only about his business or the fact that the institution of “onlookers” would come back to the city with “Metinvest”.

“As soon as they get control over the territory, the border (the demarcation line between the Anti-Terrorist Operation forces and terrorists — the author) may be moved to Berdyansk any moment, and we will be on the territory of “DPR”, says Ternavskiy.

Anastasiya Ringis, UP

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