Belarus officials spend $744K on cars in April-May

Belarus officials are going to spend 744 thousand dollars on new cars. It is the total sum for which the online applications were made in April-May. Additional money from the budget was spent on maintenance, tires, fuel and repair.

Ministry of Taxes is purchasing eight new vans or minibuses for 3.3 billion rubles. The cost of each vehicule is more than 25,000 euros. The ministry refused to comment on the cars that employees of the Ministry are expecting to get.

The Hrodna Regional Executive Committee is buying a car assembled in Belarus - Geely Emgrand X7 - costing 310 million rubles. They are buy a new car to save money.

"We have two 10-year old rusty Nivas, every year we pay roughly 20 million rubles to repair them. So we changing two old cars for one," explains the procurement officer of the Hrodna Regional Executive Committee Viktar Hahalushka.

The Horki District Executive Committee is also saving money - 70 million rubles will be spent fixing the new Geely EMGRAND X7, Skoda Oktavia and VAZ-21214 purchased in Horky in 2014.

Maintenance is also needed by German cars of the Executive Committees of Homiel and Zhlobin.

The Vitsebsk Regional Executive Committee is having its five-year old Audi A8 W12 serviced. However, the amount of money allocated for maintenance is not indicated.

Cars are also bought for Chairmen of village councils, municipal executive committees. Interestingly, the closer to the capital, the larger the amount of overhead on the work cars.

For example, The Beladubrousk Village Council (Mahiliou region) is allocating 151 million rubles, and the Uzda Executive Committee wants a car costing over 210 millions.

Incidentally, repair and maintenance of official cars is carried out by for the people's taxes. In less than an hour we found dozens of applications for purchase of summer tires, fuel, parts, maintenance. In April-May, we found half a billion rubles worth of such applications judging by the basic calculations.

According to the officials, every Belarusian should participate in the financing of government spending - each 'parasite' is to pay 20 base units. But we want this money of ordinary workers be spent on schools, hospitals, gardens, or at least new asphalt rather than a new car for the Chairman of the Executive Committee.