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'All this circus': Putin takes heat from broke, angry Russians in live call-in show
Source: Washington Post
‘All this circus’: Putin takes heat from broke, angry Russians in live call-in show
By David Filipov June 15 at 12:03 PM
MOSCOW — Facing a wave of popular unrest not seen in years, Russian President Vladimir Putin took to the nation’s airwaves Thursday to assure citizens that their lives will be getting better. Judging from the questions the Kremlin leader fielded over four long hours, Russians aren’t feeling it.
Just three days after tens of thousands of people turned out in more than 180 cities across Russia to express their dissatisfaction with the government, Putin used his annual “Direct Line with the President” call-in show to say that the Russian economy is showing signs of growth after a long recession and that “in general things will start moving to where people feel a change for the better.”
The questions that came in from viewers across the country reflected little of that. A Siberian teacher asked him how she is supposed to live on $280 a month. The residents of a Moscow suburb complained about a giant pile of garbage that they said is visible from space. A 24-year-old cancer patient from a polar mining town demanded to know why health care is in a shambles.
“Please do not lose hope. I will see how to help, including you personally,” Putin told her. “We will work on your problem and on the hospital in your town. I promise!”
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By David Filipov June 15 at 12:03 PM
MOSCOW — Facing a wave of popular unrest not seen in years, Russian President Vladimir Putin took to the nation’s airwaves Thursday to assure citizens that their lives will be getting better. Judging from the questions the Kremlin leader fielded over four long hours, Russians aren’t feeling it.
Just three days after tens of thousands of people turned out in more than 180 cities across Russia to express their dissatisfaction with the government, Putin used his annual “Direct Line with the President” call-in show to say that the Russian economy is showing signs of growth after a long recession and that “in general things will start moving to where people feel a change for the better.”
The questions that came in from viewers across the country reflected little of that. A Siberian teacher asked him how she is supposed to live on $280 a month. The residents of a Moscow suburb complained about a giant pile of garbage that they said is visible from space. A 24-year-old cancer patient from a polar mining town demanded to know why health care is in a shambles.
“Please do not lose hope. I will see how to help, including you personally,” Putin told her. “We will work on your problem and on the hospital in your town. I promise!”
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Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/the-call-in-show-that-letsrussians-take-their-problems-straight-to-vladimir-putin/2017/06/15/8d11e246-519e-11e7-a973-3dae94ed3eb7_story.html
3 replies
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