21/10/2010 15:53
Sobyanin confirmed as Moscow Mayor
Moscow’s city legislature has confirmed Sergei Sobyanin, a close aide to Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, as mayor of Moscow, lenta.ru reported.
The city duma overwhelmingly approved Sobyanin in a vote today. 32 members of duma supported the nomination, 2 voted against, one member of duma was absent from the session.
Sobyanin will replace Yury Luzhkov, who was sacked last month by President Dmitry Medvedev after running Moscow for 18 years.
In remarks to the city duma ahead of the vote, Sobyanin vowed to tackle corruption, excessive bureaucracy and ineffective management.
“Obviously, the city needs a more open and effective management system. I am talking about both administrative procedures and budget priorities,” Sobyanin said.
Sobyanin will take office Friday.