Story By: Elena Kalioglo, Sub Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Central European News
A Ukrainian politician who is the deputy of Vitaliy Klichko has been hospitalised in intensive care after he was attacked on the street.
Former boxer Vitaliy, 48, became a politician in 2005 was elected Mayor of Kiev in 2014, combining his professional boxing career with his political life that included being an MP until he retired from the sport in 2013.
However he has taken strong positions on controversial subjects including demanding closer ties to the European Union, and criticising his country’s judicial system.
It is unclear what the motive was for the attack on his deputy Vladimir Slonchak, who was hospitalised with head injuries that needed 14 stitches and is now in intensive care. Local media speculated it was in connection with protests against the city administration that have been occasionally breaking out in the capital of Ukraine.
The attack reportedly happened at the entrance to house No. 16 on the street of Metropolitan Lipkivsky at about 23:30.
According to local medias, the victim was unable to provide details of the incident, but only confirmed the fact of the attack. Solonchak said: “I’m in intensive care, I’m sorry, it’s hard for me to say.”
The spokeswoman for Slonchak, Galina Shpak, said on her Facebook page that the deputy head of the Kiev city state administration had put 14 stitches on his head.
They said that the injured man was responsible for dealing with communal ownership, ecology matters, natural resources and legal policy.
Prior to that, since 2006 he worked in the Kiev City Council in various positions – from the chief specialist of the legal expertise department of draft decisions of the Kiev City Council to the head of the legal support department of the Kiev City Council.
Slonchak is also the chairman of the supervisory board of the Kievgorstroy construction holding.
In April 2017 was also the victim of an attack when he was stabbed by a person unknown.
Slonchak is currently involved in a controversy through his role as the head of the department of legal support for the activities of the Kiev City Council in a local construction scandal.
Journalists note that on the day that Slonchak signed the “absurd conclusions” in favor of developers, Vitali Klitschko submitted to the Kiev City Council a draft decision on the appointment of Slonchak as deputy head of the Kiev city state administration.
The city council agreed on the appointment of Slonchak to this post on November 15, 2018.
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