Searching political tools for financial issues

Recently the Russian President Dmitri Medvedev dismissed four local governors. Rostislav Turovsky, Professor of the HSE Department of Public Policy comments on this governors reshuffle to the Moscow News. The expert said it was a factor in the background.

"This is an attempt to draw attention to the fact that the President has undertaken a rotation of the governor corps," says Rostislav Turovsky, a political expert.

"He is sending a signal to the public, which will be pleased that the President is striking down unpopular governors, and to other governors, who should be more active in fighting the crisis."

According to Turovsky, fighting the crisis is not so much an economic issue - which the governors really have little control over - but a political one.

"They will not be able to deal with the effects of the crisis if they have little control over the regional elections and don't have enough support from the United Russia party in each region. This was a problem in all the regions except Orlov."

There, the ageing Stroyev, Turovsky said, had a good grasp of the "administrative resources" in the past years, but his grip was waning.

Rostislav Turovsky for the Moscow News.