In the article, we will talk about the life path of Valery Serdyukov - the governor of the Leningrad Region, who led the region for 14 years. His era ended in 2012, but he is still considered one of the richest residents of St. Petersburg, entering the board of directors of Gazprom Neft PJSC.
The beginning of the way
How did Valery Serdyukov's career begin, a photo of which can be seen in the article?
A native of the Gomel region (Republic of Belarus) was born in the year of victory over Nazi Germany - November 9. His father, a teacher by profession, fought in a partisan detachment. Lost his legs, became disabled. Therefore, Valery began his career early. Before the army, he already had a working experience at the Gomselmash enterprise.
He served in the field engineer, built roads in Tyumen. On the offer to stay in the Far North, he agreed. He worked for three years as a miner in one of the mines of the Vorkutaugol association, after which he switched to Komsomol and party work, and headed the Committee of the Communist Party of the city of Vorkuta.
At the same time he studied, choosing St. Petersburg Mining University. He mastered the specialty of economist. At the end of graduate school he defended his thesis, is a candidate of science.
In 1990, Valery Serdyukov returned to production, taking the post of deputy general director of the Vorkutaugol enterprise.
Relocation to St. Petersburg
Having proved himself positively as a deputy, including the State Council of the Komi Republic, the manufacturer moved to St. Petersburg, where he was offered the position of vice-governor of the Leningrad region. This happened in 1996, and two years later Valery Serdyukov, whose biography is devoted to this article, already took the post of first vice-governor. His predecessor was Vladimir Gustov, who in 1998 was invited as deputy prime minister of the government to Moscow, and for a year Serdyukov actually acted as governor.
On September 19, 1999, official elections were held in which the hero of the article gained 30.3% of the vote, having won a landslide victory. In second place was Vladimir Gustov (22.68%), now the ex-governor of the Leningrad region. Serdyukov’s candidacy was supported by the Kremlin and some businessmen, among whom was Alexander Sabadash, the owner of the distillery.
As governor
In 2003, both candidates again claimed the governorship, and Serdyukov managed to get the support of 56.5% of voters. And in 2007, the country's president expressed confidence in him, supporting the decision of the legislative assembly by his decree. Thus, Valery Pavlovich held out as governor for 14 years.
Under him, the recession that began in the 90s ended. Big business reached the region, which resulted in the conclusion of about 150 serious investment agreements. This contributed to the influx of billions of dollars into the region. Under Valery Serdyukov, dozens of enterprises were built, a new port (Ust-Luga).
By his authority, he did not allow to realize the idea of unification of St. Petersburg and the Leningrad region, which Valentina Matvienko was particularly active in lobbying.
At the same time, the governorship of Serdyukov was accompanied by a number of scandals, after which the problem of his resignation was discussed.
Financial irregularities
For 14 years, residents of the region have the impression that their leader is classified as unsinkable. When identifying financial irregularities, his first deputies always became extreme. Valery Serdyukov was never personally found guilty, no administrative measures were applied to him. The most famous are the following scandals related to monetary issues:
- 2005 year. The misuse of funds allocated to provide the population with preferential medicines has been revealed. This is a sum of 10 million. Guilty recognized Nikolai Pustotin.
- 2010 year. A criminal case was opened, because money from the administration lost 1.8 billion rubles due to placement in a bankrupt bank. Punished by Alexander Yakovlev.
- 400 million rubles received by the region for the shares of Ruscombank disappeared. Responsibility is assigned to Rashid Ismagilov.
The last years of the governorship of Valery Serdyukov were marked by the seizure of the shores of lakes and rivers, which could not but cause a protest from the progressive public.
Pikalevo scandal
Former member of the CPSU, the governor was outside the United Russia party for quite some time. He entered its composition only in 2005. Many attribute this decision to the fact that Valery Serdyukov is a politician from God. He understood the situation well. In 2007, the governor was elected by the regional Duma on the proposal of the president. At this point, being a part of United Russia was very important, although the regional leader did not advertise widely on joining the party.
And in 2009 there was a big scandal in Pikalevo. At one time, the city-forming enterprise - the cement plant - was divided into three interdependent parts. The owners could not agree on prices for supplies, which led to a halt in production.
Citizens who were left without funds blocked the federal highway. This happened on June 2nd. One of the slogans of the protesters was the demand for the resignation of Valery Serdyukov. On June 4, Putin arrived in Pikalevo, he put three businessmen, among whom were Filaret Galchev and Oleg Deripaska, at the negotiating table. They signed the necessary papers, after which the production resumed work.
Putin, who arrived at the rank of prime minister, laid the blame not only on entrepreneurs, but also on the regional authorities. It is known that the governor wrote a letter of resignation, but the Kremlin did not accept the resignation at that time, although political analysts understood that what had happened was a serious blow to Serdyukov’s reputation.
In December 2011, elections to the State Duma of the Russian Federation took place. United Russia gathered in the Leningrad Region only 33.7% of the vote, although the national average was 49%. This was the most important reason for the early departure of the governor from his post. He did not finish it before the end of the term for several months, in May 2012 he transferred the authority to Alexander Drozdenko.
Ex-Governor's Family
As of 2014, the state of Serdyukov was estimated at 3 billion rubles. Before leaving the post of governor, Valery Pavlovich had never been involved in business, where did such high income come from?
It is known that his wife's name is Olga Ivanovna. In the past, she is a chemical engineer, and now she is a pensioner. She and her grandson can be seen in the photo of 2012, presented a little higher.
In the field of business, the sons of Valery Serdyukov succeeded. When moving to St. Petersburg, children were already adults, so their income was not required to be indicated in the declaration. They immediately created two firms - CJSC Intersolar and CJSC Vaden, which later became part of a large diversified holding.
The eldest son Vadim (photo below) is a tenant of forest land, he owns a subcontract for the construction of the Nord Stream gas pipeline. The younger Denis has serious assets in the forestry and agricultural sectors.
Today
Last November, Valery Pavlovich turned 73 years old, but he is still full of strength and energy. The ex-governor is no longer involved in politics, although after his resignation, the possibilities of his participation in the Federation Council were considered. He is currently on the board of directors of Gazprom Neft.