Nil Ushakov retained the post of mayor of the capital of Latvia

Riga Mayor Nil Ushakov remained in his post after an extraordinary meeting of the Riga City Council, which voted for his resignation. It is reported by the local portal Delfi.

20 deputies voted for Ushakov's resignation, 33 voted against. During the meeting, opposition deputies accused Ushakov of corruption scandals, as well as the inability of the Duma to reduce queues for kindergartens and effectively maintain the streets.

On January 30, the Corruption Prevention and Combating Bureau (KNAB) conducted searches at Ushakov's house in Mežaparks and at his workplace in the Riga City Council. As reported by LETA agency, bureau employees confiscated a computer and a folder with documents from the mayor's office.

Investigative measures, according to media reports, may be related to the scandal surrounding the supply of public transport to Riga. According to investigators, enterprises from the Czech Republic and Poland paid a bribe of 800 thousand euros for the supply of about 200 buses and trolleybuses to the capital of Latvia.

Ushakov himself, after the searches, declared his non-involvement in any illegal actions.

Nil Ushakov took office as Mayor of Riga in 2009 and was re-elected for a third term in 2017. Ushakov leads the Harmony party, which won first place in the 2018 parliamentary elections with 19.8% of the vote. In the Seimas, deputies from this party occupy 22 seats out of 100. The opposition twice demanded the resignation of Nil Ushakov, but the deputies refused to dismiss him from the post of mayor.