A small group of people who present themselves as protectors of Russian-speakers and poor residents have managed to enter the 14th Saeima from the political party Stabilitātei! Without state funding, active campaigning or attention from Latvian media. Many of the deputies elected cannot answer questions related to their monetary situation and even have a criminal record, as reported by TV3 programme Nekā personīga.
Aleksejs Rosļikovs actively pits the political party Stabilitātei! and its supporters against the Latvian government. He reaches out to the portion of the Russian community in Latvia that has ambiguous opinions towards Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the demolition of Soviet monuments in Latvia.
To achieve their goals, Rosļikovs’ party picked social networks as their main platform. His two Facebook accounts have nearly 44 000 followers and nearly 30 000 on TikTok.
Rosļikovs originally entered the political arena as a member of Harmony. In 2018 he was one of the heads of the Harmony congress that praised the party’s leaders. However, he failed to reach any major heights in the party because of the scandals at Riga City Council, which resulted in the city council’s dismissal.
He was detained by the State Security Service in relation to the pamphlets distributed in Bolderaja encouraging residents to join a protest in support of Nīls Ušakovs. The pamphlets depicted Ušakovs dressed as a prisoner of a concentration camp grabbed by men dressed in German uniforms. On his neck Ušakovs had a poster saying ‘Because he’s Russian’. Rosļikovs remains a witness in the criminal case regarding incitement of national, ethnic and racial hatred. The investigation continues.
Similarly to the financing of Harmony, there are many questions about the sources of funding of Rosļikovs’ party. Information from the database of the Corruption Prevention and Combating Bureau (KNAB) states that the party received only EUR 13 000 in donations. This amount is not enough to cover office maintenance and campaigning expenses. Rosļikovs has not donated a cent to the party. Two years ago Rosļikovs listed debts worth EUR 100 000 in his income declaration.
Saeima deputy Gloria Grevcova is also expected to reveal her income. Popularity-wise she is far ahead of Rosļikovs. She has many followers in Russia on social media accounts. Photos and videos posted on social media show her dressed in clothes bearing symbols glorifying Russia. She is also proud of the fact that her content is used by Kremlin-owned television channels and Belarusian official media. Shortly after giving her oath as Saeima deputy, Grevcova gave an interview to a radio station owned by Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko, saying that people in Latvia are thrown out of their homes for small utility debts and that there is strict censure in the country. «Previously people were afraid to voice their opinions openly. This is because we have censure. A rather strict censure, I have to admit. But people gradually stop being afraid,» she said.
On the same day Grevcova’s opinion regarding the destruction of Soviet heritage in Daugavpils was broadcast on Russian television channel controlled by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
On social network accounts Gloria Grevcova demonstrates her lifestyle – drives a Mercedez Benz, lives in a large house with expensive home appliances. Grevcova has not had an official job in eight years. Her last workplace was Dolo firm, where Gloria Grevcova was hired in May 2013 for a year as part of a funding programme of the European Social Fund. She was employed as an assistant at the company and her duties included loading firewood, cutting grass and keeping the territory clean.
As a candidate in 14th Saeima elections Grevcova reported to the Central Election Commission (CVK) that her job in Dolo is her active job. She also lied about working there as an advisor.
She also lied about her education, as Gloria Grevcova could not have graduated from Latvian Academy of Sport Education because she never studied there.
The prosecutor who presented Grevcova with charges says that she lied to the Central Election Commission intentionally. On top of that, the prosecutor says Grevcova did not sign the documents that were submitted to CVK. «This is a very serious offence. The prosecutor raised charges for reporting false information as a candidate in elections. This may have affected results, considering how many people voted for her,» comments prosecutor Edijs Pastars.
The first court hearing is scheduled for 20 December. Saeima deputies will need to vote to permit Grevcova’s criminal prosecution.
Svetlana Čulkova is one of the founders of Stabilitātei! party. In the Saeima she is entrusted with keeping the party’s records. Like Grevcova, she is active on social media, particularly Facebook, where she actively opposes the demolition of Soviet monuments in Latvia and the creation of a National Defence Service. «The departing parliament has voted in favour of removing the legislative draft on the creation of a National Defence Service from the agenda. This is good news, because when attempts to bring it back to the parliament surface again, we will be able to oppose it. We will do all we can to make sure it never sees the light of day,» said Čulkova.
To work in security, foreign affairs and security committees of the parliament, deputies are required to have access to official secrets. However, there are concerns that most members of Rosļikovs’ party may not be provided with one.
More than ten years ago Dmitrijs Kovaļenko was sentenced for illegal storage and sale of alcohol. He was sentenced to community service.
His wife Jekaterina Kovaļenko ran in Saeima elections as well but did not receive enough votes. She received administrative penalty for illegal sale of tobacco products. Four years ago Dmitrijs Kovaļenko received an administrative penalty for selling cigarettes of unknown origin in Jelgava. Between 2017 and 2021 Kovaļenko has not had any official income.
The 14th Saeima will also have athlete and once Harmony member Jefimijs Klementjevs. While he has no active criminal cases, his wife wife was accused of fictive employment at Rīgas namu pārvaldnieks.
The Saeima will also include former Daugavpilc City Council member Viktors Pučka. On Facebook he shared information that matches Russia’s narratives about events in Ukraine. For example, he mentioned how Ukrainian troops had kept the city of Mariupol as hostage. Several weeks after Russian attacks, he posted Putin’s photo with the words «Let’s support our leader!». In 2016 Daugavpils City Council Pučka was punished by the State Language Centre for insufficient state language skills. Saeima deputies are required to have 1st Degree of C level state language skills. Pučka lacked sufficient knowledge. The city council’s Department of Finances allocated EUR 2 300 for language lessons. During the first meeting of the 14th Saeima he avoided journalists. Rosļikovs answered questions on his behalf. This means it is entirely possible that Pučka still does not have sufficient language skills.