Times are tough for the organizers of the Sochi 2014 Winter Games. Almost every week has its share of hard knocks and bad press. At the beginning of June, a report from the opposition to Vladimir Putin's regime claimed that 25 to 30 billion dollars had been embezzled by those close to those in power, through the awarding of public contracts for the construction of sites carried out without the slightest call for tenders. .
In turn, an Estonian daily, Postimees, joins the ranks of the many detractors of the Russian organization of the Winter Games. His article, published on June 7, denounces the way in which the authorities seek to censor information on the numerous setbacks in the preparation of competition sites. Here is an excerpt:
“Recently, a huge flood took place in Krasnaya Polyana [the main Olympic venue], where is notably located on village of Estonians and next to which cross-country ski trails are being built. The water came mountains flooded the works, to the point that only the jibs of the cranes could be seen. The workers had to be evacuated quickly. It is estimated that hundreds of tonnes of construction material were submerged under water.
The flood was made public only after an ill-intentioned person – possibly a foreign agent – posted a video on the Internet. The organizers have not commented on the event. They just acknowledged that there was a “small flood” but that nothing serious had happened.
It was the population who started sending comments on social networks, assuming that the situation should make equipment suppliers happy. : “How much technical equipment can we write off now! » ; “They will send a telegram to Moscow saying that the cranes and excavators are drowned and they need to be replaced with others, send us two billion rubles. »
Two billion rubles constitute only a small part of the budget of the Olympic Games, the exact amount of which no one knows. Dmitri Kozak, Deputy Prime Minister responsible for organizing the Games, spoke of 1.200 trillion rubles, saying that most of it would go to renovating the city of Sochi (locals estimate that the bulk of these sums could go straight into the pockets of civil servants). We are talking about 29,5 billion euros, the equivalent of almost four years of the Estonian state budget! »
In Sochi, the countdown indicated, Monday June 10, 270 days before the opening of the Winter Games. More than enough to complete the work and complete the final details of the preparation, assure the organizers. Enough, also, to unleash criticism and ridicule from the foreign press, the political opposition and even the local population.
