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Preparations underway in Chechnya for Kadyrov's inauguration

By Umalt Chadayev

CHECHNYA -  On April 5 the inauguration of a new head of the Chechen Republic will take place. More than 1,500 people are expected to take part in the event.

The precise venue is still being kept secret, with a number of possible locations being mentioned, among them Kadyrov’s out-of-town residence, situated in Chechnya’s second largest city Gudermes, a complex of government buildings in Grozny, and one or two other places in the Chechen capital.

A source in the president's office says that the list of invited guests will include the Russian President, the prime minister, and the speakers of both chambers of the federal parliament, the heads of the Russian regions, the leaders of the various ministries and departments, well-known politicians and public figures.

“16 million roubles will be allocated from the republic’s budget for the holding of the ceremony. The remainder of the cost will be met by the Akhmat Kadyrov Public Foundation.  The events will conclude with a concert in which well-known pop stars will take part, and a grand firework display, " the official says.

The exact cost of the event is unknown. Figures quoted run as high as 600 million roubles, but Chechen officials reject this information.

Meanwhile, in recent days a massive operation has begun in Grozny to clear the streets of domestic rubbish and construction debris. Almost every week there are subbotniks [shifts of voluntary unpaid labour] in which the employees of the various ministries and agencies, college students and schoolchildren take part. Members of the law enforcement agencies are being actively drawn in to this work. They are mainly being deployed in a clean-up of the land on either side of the federal Kavkaz highway.

“By April 5, Grozny will really be a different place," says Akhmed Dzhabrailov, an administration official in the Chechen capital. The motorways are being repaired, the work of restoration and reconstruction is continuing on buildings that were damaged during the war, several small public gardens are being landscaped, and the whole area is being given a face-lift. All this work is going on practically round the clock.”

The Chechen interior ministry has announced that on April 5 law enforcement officers will be on high alert. “There won’t be any emergency procedures, but the general level of security will be quite high, given the expected number of state officials," a Chechen police officer says.

The head of the organizing committee for the inauguration ceremony was appointed a few weeks ago. He is Odes Baisultanov, acting head of the Chechen government and a maternal cousin of Ramzan Kadyrov. Baisultanov has said that the forthcoming event will be a “memorable” one.

On March 2 this year the Chechen parliament almost unanimously (with one vote against) confirmed Ramzan Kadyrov as president of the republic. Shortly before that, his predecessor Alu Alkhanov, who had been president since 2004, resigned.

Ramzan Kadyrov, the youngest son of Akhmat-Hadji Kadyrov (assassinated in May 2004), was appointed Chechen prime minister in March 2005 and became de facto head of the republic. The presidential ambitions of Kadyrov junior were realized scarcely more than four months after he turned 30 (the age at which a Chechen citizen becomes eligible to occupy the highest post in the republic, in accordance with the Constitution that was adopted in March 2003).

(D)

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