How They Profit from Coronavirus

Hi, this is Navalny, and this is a medical

mask. It costs 3 rubles 70 kopecks. We can see

on the government procurement website that the state

was buying them at that price just 3

weeks ago. Right now, the world is being swept by

the coronavirus, and masks have become a hot

commodity and may become completely scarce

especially if hostile

foreign forces that want to sow

panic in Russia over a possible epidemic succeed.

We didn’t actually know that such foreign forces

existed, but President Putin was

briefed on it. As for these provocative fake reports,

the FSB reports that

they are mainly organized from abroad, but

unfortunately this will always accompany us.

The goal of such throw-ins is clear: to sow panic,

panic among the population. Fortunately, the wise

government will definitely protect us, and

first of all, they will

arrest all the panic-mongers, and second, they

will not allow prices for medical

masks to rise. No speculation, no profiteering.

That’s what they’re telling us on television.

My favorite TV host

Nailya Asker-zade says the government is trying

to keep prices for medical masks under control and

also prevent the emergence of a

shortage.

And those representatives of pharmacy chains

who complain about the lack of medical masks

from distributors—according to Golikova, in

many regions there is

unfair competition. What’s more,

not only the government but Putin himself

is demanding an end to profiteering from the sale of

masks and is even calling for

licenses to be revoked from pharmacies that inflate

prices for this product. Or else, on the shore of Fedin—

they decided to cash in on this, and for every

organization there will be consequences. We will not allow it.

That’s what they tell us on

television. But about real life, we’ll now hear

from the mayor of Moscow,

Sergei Semyonovich Sobyanin.

What is an epidemic for some people is, for

a member of United Russia (the ruling political party), always

an opportunity to make some extra money. The Center

for Pharmaceutical Supply of the Moscow Health Department

is buying masks

like these for 200 million rubles. There are

different kinds of masks there—children’s and adult

ones, surgical ones, whatever you like. This one here is

a children’s Bereginya mask. It’s very important,

yes, that every child should have a mask.

Thank you, Sergei Semyonovich.

Now there will be enough for all the city’s children.

We remember that as recently as February 14,

the Central Tuberculosis Research Institute was buying

these masks for 3.70 rubles each.

But of course, the talented Moscow

officials managed to do even better, because they have

enormous experience. For that, I’d especially like

to thank City Hall and Putin and United

Russia. Thank you, thank you. And that’s because

now ordinary people will be able to save money.

The supplier of these masks sells them at

retail for 207 rubles per pack,

with 50 masks in a pack—that is,

a little over 4 rubles apiece. But Putin

demanded that no rise in mask prices be allowed,

so we have no doubt that

Sobyanin bought them wholesale for 3.70 rubles

or less, and through the network of state

pharmacies

will sell them at about the same price,

well, maybe a little higher,

but probably no more than 5 rubles

per mask. So we’ll all save money. And now,

just the numbers—once you look at them, you’ll

understand what disgusting crooks

we have in power.

These masks, which are sold at retail for

207 rubles per pack, Sobyanin

buys wholesale from the same supplier for

472 rubles. This is

stated directly in the government procurement documents.

In other words, in bulk he buys them at twice the price

that this very same company

sells them for at retail. And they bought them without

a tender, from a sole supplier,

because of an emergency situation. Next,

the goods bought by City Hall go to

a state social pharmacy, and we

weren’t lazy—we went there to buy

a few of these masks. There, they

don’t sell them by the pack: a maximum of 20 pieces

per customer, and the saleswoman rubs her hands

with solution and counts out one mask for us

at 12 rubles apiece.

I thought so.

And it’s the same with all the masks. I’ve just

given an example with children’s masks, but all

the other masks were procured in exactly the same way,

or even worse. For example, this adult

medical mask made by Rubix.

Three weeks ago, when the coronavirus was already

causing shortages, the tuberculosis institute was buying them

for 1.34 rubles, while Sobyanin somehow managed, without

a tender, under emergency procedures, to buy them for 7.15 rubles

apiece—five times more expensive. And in the social

pharmacies they sell them for 9 rubles. And that’s how all

200 million rubles were spent. If we are dealing

with a crime, with corruption,

with profiteering at citizens’ expense, then first of all

we must always see it through to the end, and

second, this can be done—turning a blind eye to what?

So what do we get? While Putin, the FSB, Mishustin, and

Golikova are feeding us nonsense about how

someone abroad wants to sow panic, while the

anti-monopoly service threatens

commercial pharmacies with fines for

overpricing masks, in Moscow

right now the mayor’s office is openly stealing,

buying masks at three times the price and then

in the city’s social

pharmacies selling them at 4 to 6 times

the price—to people with disabilities, veterans, and everyone else.

For everyone else, unquestionably, the key task

for all of us has been and remains caring for

veterans. In connection with all this, I have

a question and some proposals. A question for Putin and

Sobyanin: do you have any conscience at all?

And my proposal to everyone: never, never

ever vote for

representatives of the United Russia party.

These people are the worst—they will always steal

and steal from everything. Vote against them.

Campaign against them. Subscribe to

our channel.

They tell the truth here.