Two years have passed since Evghenia Gutul took over as the governor of Gagauzia, and now the promises made by her and Ilan Shor during the election campaign can be evaluated. The conclusion so far: Gagauzia has not seen a single euro of the promised 500 million, and more and more local politicians are disappointed with the current team of the Executive Committee and no longer see real possibilities for collaboration, IPN reports.
“It is the worst period in the history of Gagauzia’s development”: how politicians see the rule of Evghenia Gutul.
More and more politicians from Gagauzia are disappointed with the governance of Evghenia Gutul and her team from the Executive Committee. The mayor of Cirsova, Anna Hohlova, admitted that during the elections for the position of bashkan, she collaborated with Evghenia Gutul. According to her, both she and other residents had high expectations, “but the reality was completely different”.
“Today we are witnessing a critical situation in autonomy – probably the most difficult since the formation of Gagauzia. Instead of the promised “renaissance”, we are faced with disappointment and chaos. The Executive Committee practically does not finance infrastructural and social projects at the local level. There is a lack of basic dialogue with local authorities, especially with those who do not support the party or the direction promoted by the governor. It is evident and painful: a division is being made between “ours” and “the others”, a fact that destroys unity and undermines the citizens’ trust”, Hohlova emphasized in a comment for IPN.
According to her, the village of Cirsova, despite electoral promises, “has not received a single leu in support”.
The mayor of Comrat, Serghei Anastasov, expresses his disappointment that Gagauzia not only did not receive what was promised, but also lost a lot. “No project from the list of promises has been implemented in the city, and some existing projects were even destroyed before they could be completed. Because the necessary contribution for the packing yard project was not found, the autonomy lost 22 million lei. Two years have passed – we do not have an airport, we do not have a tram, we do not have 7 000 jobs, on the contrary, 400 were closed”, emphasized Serghei Anastasov for IPN.
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The two years of Evghenia Gutul’s governance represent the worst period in the relations between Gagauzia and the central authorities of the Republic of Moldova – this is the opinion of the president of the local council from the village of Cismichioi, Dmitri Ianul.
“Furthermore, following the election of Evghenia Gutul and the appointment of the Executive Committee of Gagauzia by the fugitive offender Ilan Shor, the central authorities, embassies, and representatives of other countries – including Turkey, which has always been our partner – have ceased communicating with the authorities of the autonomy. But Gagauzia itself has withdrawn from the working group of the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova and the People’s Assembly of Gagauzia. This is the worst period in the history of Gagauzia’s development”, Dmitri Ianul commented for IPN.
Dmitri Ianul added that, as a result of changes to the VAT legislation and the fact that Gagauzia did not refund VAT to entrepreneurs, most large businesses have left the region, which has led to a decrease in budget revenues. He pointed out that Gagauzia has become isolated, and the region’s leadership has tried to reduce expenses, especially for local projects.
According to him, if it’s about what has been accomplished, “this is the famous GagauziyaLand and the Cismichioi – Etulia road. However, after weighing all the losses, it’s not worth the effort”.
The deputy of the People’s Assembly of Gagauzia, Alexandr Tarnavski, noted that even Gagauzia’s strategic partner, Turkey, has ceased cooperation with the region. He stated that in two years, no investment agreement has been signed or published between the Executive Committee of Gagauzia and international donors. According to him, until the rise to power of Ilan Shor’s team, the Turkish Republic annually inaugurated functional public institutions – a stadium, hospital, college, and others.
The deputy from Comrat mentioned that the Gagauz authorities do not have a long-term vision for the region’s development. At the same time, collaboration with Chisinau is interrupted, the trust of external partners is undermined, and major businesses are leaving the jurisdiction.
500 million euros, airport, jobs – what did Shor and Gutul promise?
The biggest promise made by Ilan Shor, conditioned by the election of Evghenia Gutul to the position of governor, was to attract 500 million euros in the first two years. In reality, there are no official data about the attracted investments, and the road repairs in the first months were financed from unknown sources, without explanations regarding the legality of these funds.
Gutul and Shor promised to create 7 000 jobs or 3 500 in the first two years. In reality, the number of jobs has decreased, and according to Alexandr Tarnavski, the number of active companies has dropped from 6 433 in 2022 to 5 998 in 2024.
With the arrival of Evghenia Gutul in office, the tourist infrastructure was to be improved to attract visitors. Eventually, at the initiative of the Executive Committee, the Office of Tourism and Wine was opened, funded by the Gagauzia budget.
The construction of the most modern airport – a hub that would connect the East with the West, is another ambitious commitment, the realization of which has not even begun.
During the electoral campaign for the position of governor, Evghenia Gutul promised an additional 1 000 euros to the allowance for the birth of each child in Gagauzia. So far, this promise has not been fulfilled and there are no signs that it will be realized.
In addition to the aforementioned, the promises of developing a social canteen for the needy in large localities, creating a community center for people with severe disabilities, building an indoor swimming pool in the city of Comrat, and renovating the stadiums in the city of Ceadar-Lunga and the village of Congaz, remain only at the level of promises.
Among the unfulfilled promises are the reconstruction and construction of the “Olimpiet” sports camp with the arrangement of the access road, the building of a modern stadium in the city of Vulcanesti, and the major repair of the Youth Sports School in Comrat.
Some promises were made, but they turned against us.
From promises, the amusement park “GagauziyaLand” was built, but the control authorities repeatedly found irregularities during the construction. Two electricians were injured, one ending up in a coma, and a little girl suffered a leg fracture on one of the carousels.
Another result of the Evghenia Gutul team is the monthly payments of 2 000 lei for pensioners and employees in the budget sector. The money is transferred bypassing Moldovan legislation, in the form of “social assistance”. However, these payments have created problems for the inhabitants of the region, as the funds were obtained illegally, even though the regional authorities presented them as official. In addition, the beneficiaries are checked for possible cases of electoral corruption, thus risking fines.
Nevertheless, the amount of financial aid for vulnerable families during the cold season has been reduced from the regional budget under the leadership of Evghenia Gutul, from 700 to 400 lei.