The Prosecutor's Office will reconsider the complaint against the head of Komi for calling protestors “ecological garbage”

On May 5th, Viktor Vorobyov, head of the Communist faction in the Komi legislature, announced that the court had ordered the Komi Prosecutor's Office to review the complaint against Vladimir Uyba, the head of the Republic. Uyba had previously referred to opponents of landfill construction as "ecological garbage." The prosecutor's office had initially declined to initiate legal proceedings against Uyba, citing the alleged absence of a specific group targeted by his remarks.

Viktor Vorobyov's complaint against the governor of Komi for referring to opponents of a landfill as "ecological garbage" was upheld by the court. The prosecutor's office had previously declined to initiate proceedings against Vladimir Uyba, citing the absence of a specific group targeted by his remarks. However, the court noted that Uyba's statement was not unaddressed, and as a result, the case was sent back to the prosecutor's office for reconsideration.

Uyba's comment came amid protests by residents of Ezhva against the landfill construction in December 2022. At a meeting with the public, Uyba was asked to apologize for his remark, but he instead suggested going home to watch soccer and left.

This is not the first scandal involving Uyba. On April 26, 2023, the governor refused to move his car at the request of traffic police, citing a meeting he was holding and "cordoning off" the area. People complained about the parked car, and a video of the dialogue between the police officer and the official was published by the Telegram channel "Excited Komi." State Duma member Yevgeny Popov subsequently called for Uyba's resignation.

Uyba had also referred to Oleg Mikhailov, who represents Komi in the State Duma, as a "new fascist." However, the court found no signs of insult in his statement.

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