{"id":445575,"date":"2018-06-11T19:10:50","date_gmt":"2018-06-11T19:10:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.moldova.org\/en\/?p=445575"},"modified":"2018-06-11T19:15:16","modified_gmt":"2018-06-11T19:15:16","slug":"weekly-roundup-andrei-nastases-win-chisinau-vlahs-surprising-cult-personality-russian-lost-position","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.moldova.org\/en\/weekly-roundup-andrei-nastases-win-chisinau-vlahs-surprising-cult-personality-russian-lost-position\/","title":{"rendered":"Weekly Roundup: Andrei N\u0103stase’s win in Chi\u0219in\u0103u, Vlah’s surprising cult of personality, and Russian lost position"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading Time: <\/span> 4<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>

11 June 2018- This weekly roundup comes later than usual due to our editor’s inability to combine studies and writing. Plus, following the insane flow of Moldovan politics requires time and nerves. Or does it?<\/p>\n

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N\u0103stase is getting used to the seat of a protester-mayor:\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>On June 3, Andrei N\u0103stase of Platform \u201cDignity and Truth\u201d won<\/a> Chi\u0219in\u0103u’s mayor seat by 52,57%. His opponent, Ion Ceban, won 47,43% of the votes.<\/p>\n

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4 June 2018-\u00a0The full preliminary results (100%) of the Chi\u0219in\u0103u mayoral elections reveal that Andrei N\u0103stase of Platform \u201cDignity and Truth\u201d won the mayor seat by 52,57%.<\/p>\n

His opponent, Ion Ceban, won 47,43% of the votes.<\/p>\n\n

The mayor-elect called on “pro-European, anti-oligarchic” voters and forces to remain united for parliamentary elections later this year (RFE\/RL<\/a>).<\/p>\n

“Let us continue in the same way, to remain united, and that is how we will succeed in the future, both in parliament and in the other elections,” Nastase said.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

On the other side, Ceban said in his conceding speech that he congratulates N\u0103stase with his win, but expects him every day at 8 am at the City Council- Ceban himself is a Socialist city councilor.<\/p>\n

And so N\u0103stase did come early to work: Despite not being acknowledged by the Electoral Commission yet, N\u0103stase has already paid several visits to the City Council. Moreover, he has started to warn some officials with firings over incompetence and corruption claims:<\/p>\n

“Don’t do anything in the last hundreds of meters”, told N\u0103stase.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The unappointed mayor has also shown up at the demolition site of the former Cinema “Gaudeamus”, famous for its special place rather than the Soviet-ish beauty. Climbing over fences and bulldozers, N\u0103stase asked the workers to stop the demolition of the Cinema, with the claim that the building deserves to be saved. Maybe it does deserve to be saved, but what is more certain is that someone from the previous administration authorized the privatization and demolition. Former mayor Dorin Chirtoac\u0103 claims the building was privatized by Voronin family around 2004.<\/p>\n

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New Chirtoac\u0103<\/strong>: Vitalie Spr\u00e2ncean\u0103 argues for Open Democracy<\/a> that by electing Andrei N\u0103stase for the mayor seat, the Chi\u0219in\u0103u locals chose again a “political agenda” for the city. Spr\u00e2ncean\u0103 says that the city needs something “apolitical” than a promise to save the democracy from the famous “Russian tanks”. Will N\u0103stase become a restarted Dorin Chirtoac\u0103?<\/p>\n

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Staying\u00a0with mayors:\u00a0<\/strong>Dumitru \u0218alari, mayor of\u00a0B\u0103cioi suburb, declared that the Democrat MP Constantin \u021au\u021bu threatened him to leave two positions in the local council, including the mayor seat. \u0218alari is now requesting asylum from the US and EU embassies for him and his family, claiming insecurity. The B\u0103cioi mayor is a member of the National Unity Party.<\/p>\n

\u021au\u021bu rejected the accusations for TV8<\/a> and recommended \u0218alari to contact the police.<\/p>\n

At the same time, some B\u0103cioc councilor stated that \u0218alari might be involved in some penal cases.<\/p>\n

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Cult of personality, Gagauzia-style: <\/strong><\/p>\n

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According to nokta.md<\/a>, Gagauzia’s bashkan, Irina Vlah, put her signature on 5 babies. All 5 babies, 3 and 2 cousins, had shirts with Vlah’s\u00a0portrait too:<\/p>\n

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We can all agree that babies are cute and a cult of personality is not cute. No?<\/p>\n

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Artist of the People:\u00a0<\/strong>The Russian (actually Bulgarian) pop-signer (of the 00s), Filip Kirkorov, received the award of “Artist of the People” from the Moldovan President Igor Dodon.<\/p>\n

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In the same weekend, Kirkorov sang at the Strawberry Festival held in Dodon’s home village- Sadova. Allegedly, for free. Who knows? Maybe picking strawberries with a president pays off. This is hardly news, but it is obvious that Dodon encircles him with notorious Russians who work for him “for free”.<\/p>\n

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