Orenburg’s Ministry of Forestry Wins "Darwin Award" For Putting Their Stupidity on Video
In Orenburg, the Minister of Forestry and three of his subordinates were fired after a video of their "work routine" was published online. The officials demonstrated the complexity of their work in an amateur variety show. The video surprised the online community, regional authorities, and our program.
Damir Gaifulin with the details.
Call Center: Controversy. This video was filmed in an office of the Ministry of Forestry of the Orenburg Oblast. Accompanied by Tchaikovsky, the heads of the departments are demonstratively playing cards for the budget money. There's even a word "budget" written on the sack with the banknotes.
Another scene: The former Forestry Minister, Viktor Tonkikh, is talking on the phone with the governor of the Oblast. He doesn't realize that soon, they'll meet again on a rather nasty occasion. In the meantime, Tonkikh gives his subordinates an important and serious order to increase regional tourism. He even uses a snake whip to appear more impressive.
"Here's my order: You must organize everything. The hunt, saunas with a local charm."
His subordinates are obediently rushing to fulfill the tasks. According to some data, this video-masterpiece was filmed to promote the Orenburg Oblast in the inner tourism market. The authors hoped that such videos would show the region's guests the local hospitality and the creativity of the officials who played all the roles.
The heads of various departments are gladly posing in women's clothes. Here's Frau Vitalina — the head of the Wildlife, Water, and Natural Resources Department, Vitaly Skopintsev. Here's Gosles Yedzora — head of the Forestry and Fire Supervision Department, Yerkibay Zhumaev. And here's Sarah Malyukevich — the head of the Information Management and Logistics Department, Sergey Malyukov. She's welcomed with honors.
The fun continues inside the micro-bus. Alcohol is flowing like water. The fiery dance of the man in red underwear was the grand finale of the movie. He also works in the Ministry. The description reads: Nothing extraordinary, just the work routine of the Ministry of Forestry.
The video surprised Internet users and the regional authorities. The reaction of Governor Berg was instant. Honorary Resident of Orenburg, Minister Viktor Tonkikh, and his deputies Dmitry Teteryatnik, Igor Dobrovidov, and Vladimir Ryabov were fired.
"I decided to fire the authors watching the first seconds of the video. It's not the behavior worthy of a civil servant. It violates all laws of morality. One can ignore the stupid video filmed by the Ulyanovsk cadets. But the age and position of these actors allow them to be nominated only for the Darwin's Award".
Despite the absurdity and irrationality of the plot, the video was filmed professionally. However, the montage is awful. According to the officials, it was assembled from several parts. Initially, the video was prepared for some special occasion for "domestic use only". But for some unknown reason, the video appeared online.
Tengiz Lukashvili, Ministry of Forestry: Ask the one who posted the video, he might explain how he assembled it.
- But it doesn't show you wearing a dress.
Tengiz Lukashvili, Ministry of Forestry: The video was intended for a private variety show. It was stolen and posted online.
- Who do you think stole it?
Tengiz Lukashvili, Ministry of Forestry: I have no idea. I'd like to look the man in the eye.
The variety show proved to be rather old with acting officials playing along with their former colleagues. Here's the former Deputy Head of the Hunting Sector, Artyom Nikulin, a convicted felon. He's serving 4.5 years for abuse of official authority. An interesting fact: When Nikulin was arrested his boss, Alexander Sotnikov, handed in his resignation who allegedly reached the age of retirement.
After Minister Tonkikh was fired, Vladimir Morozov became the incumbent Minister of Forestry. Previously, he served as the Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Processing Industry. The locals don't know what to expect from the new team of officials. Perhaps whips, dresses, bow-ties, and even alcohol are still somewhere in the Ministry left by the previous leadership influencing the work of the renewed Ministry. The most important thing is to have a budget sack that hasn't been gambled away — they still have work to do.
Damir Gaifulin, Ivan Zuyev Vesti: Call Center