Nenets governor dismissed
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev today fired four governors, among them Valery Potapenko in the Nenets Autonomous Okrug. He is replaced by Igor Fyodorov, a current deputy governor in neighboring Arkhangelsk Oblast.
The dismissal could be a result of the United Russia’s poor results in the region, as well as a signal about a more rapid merger with neighboring Arkhangelsk Oblast, a local analyst says to BarentsObserver. It might also indicate that Mr. Potapenko has proven uncapable of handing the looming economic crisis in the region.
Valery Potapenko is one of four governors, who now have to leave their posts. He is joined by Governor of Pskov Mikhail Kuznetsov, Governor of Voronezh Vladimir Kulakov and Governor of Oryel Yegor Stroyev. The reason for the dismissals is not mentioned in the press releases from the President website.
The new governor Igor Fyodorov is currently working as deputy governor in the Arkhangelsk administration of Ilya Mikhalchuk. He is also former head of the Arkhenergo energy company. His appointment to the post in the Nenets AO could be a sign of the Nenets AO’s soon formal inclusion in Arkhangelsk Oblast. However, analyst Mikhail Vinogradov from the Petersburg Politika company says to newspaper Vedomosti that Mr. Fyodorov has never really supported a merger between Nenets AO and Arkhangelsk Oblast, and that he is unlikely to try to step up the process.
Valerii Potapenko was in summer of 2006 appointed governor in the Nenets AO. He then replaced Alexei Barinov, who had been put in prison for alleged illegal financial operations. Before becoming governor, Valery Potapenko worked as federal inspector in the region.
