My beloved capital

Askar Shokanov

Astana is preparing to celebrate its first anniversary. There have been many statements that it would astonish the world in the future and would be on the same level with the most famous cities of planet since the beginning of large-scale and not less advertised building of new Kazakhstani capital. The first important date-is reason for thinking about how the carte-blanche given to the city was used.
The movement of administrative-cultural center of the country built from the scratch by the famous Japanese architect Kisho Kurokau has long been considered as a “mirage in steppe” in the political lobby. In the camp of opposition there have been quite risky comparisons with the Ancient Egypt, where Akhet-Aton, the city of luxury of pharaoh Ekhnaton, disappeared after the death of a ruler as fast as it was erected among the sands. But even after the decade, many Kazakhstanians look askance at the unprofitable skyscrapers considering that the wealth of whole country-oil dollars go to the sewage and foundations of new buildings.
Initially it was declared that turning of the plain regional center into the masterpiece of architectural idea would cost no budget tenge, but according to various evaluations, from 1 to 1,5 billion dollars are invested from State Budget only for the development of infrastructure and construction of communication annually. It is considered that most of the investments in building Astana are private. We can dispute about the ways how this investment boom is achieved, but fact remains. Today little has been left from the previous exile-barrack architecture of Akomlinsk, Selinograd and Akmola on the shores of Ishim.        
Despite the severe climate (the temperature drop makes up sometimes 80 degrees and in winter and in summer) Astana has been almost rebuilt within the decade. It is true that now in a strange way the urbanistic skyscrapers of the most various forms and colours combine with the strict minarets and golden domes of mosques, odd buildings in the shape of dinosaur’s egg or gigantic UFO. The golden inscriptions on the State buildings resemble the signboards of pavilions of Exhibition of National Economy Achievements (VDNH) place very much: “Electrification”, “Sheep breeding”, “Oil” and “Atomic energy”.
Although the architectural appearance of the capital was always considered to be the holy of holies, the foreign architects weren’t particularly enthusiastic about it. I remember how the architect of Europe Bulgarian Georgi Stoilov commented  with restraint the statement about that the capital would be equal with the most famous cities of the world in a short period of time. Some unique features in its appearance are not observed, in any way for the time being.In the opinion of experts, perhaps  taboo on the criticism, the absence of objective discussion of the projects, the hurry, the replacement of the idea contest  with the competition of money and relations are the basic reasons because of which the building of capital sometimes goes against all the architectural canons.
You look at the stone sculptures of the numerous Ministries, business-centers, hotels, communities of left bank and it seems that they are beautiful, but something is wrong. It is difficult for amateur to understand the reason of why the feeling of domination of some graded, heartless and international style appears, at that not in a good way. Maybe, because all these objects-are of different colours, and not connected with each other by any means although in the developed countries, administrative-business centers, which had been planned to build on the left bank of Ishim initially, are the group of office scyscrapers, which has no relations to the apartment block because the meaning of art of town planning architecture, especially when everything is built on the empty place, is concluded in creating the harmonic environment where everything is balanced. In our case, it seems that the situation is let take its course and the builders don’t even try to conform their actions here.
At the same time, the famous capitals of the world are distinguished with the symbolic objects, which they inherited from the previous ages. When they speak about Paris, certainly, the association with Eiffel tower-symbol, which draws the looks of everyone and everything even today, arises. What about Moscow Kremlin? And London Tower? And Chicago skyscrapers? All of them are unique. Unfortunately, nothing of this kind really original thing hasn’t been built in Astana up to now.
It is enough to take as an example the Palace of peace and consent which is well-known by the name of “Pyramid”. About 30 million dollars have been spent for the realization of gracious project of the famous british architect Norman Foster. However, it didn’t cause expected furor. Today this impressive building with spacious showrooms and concert halls stands empty in expectation of next meeting of the world’s religious leaders and these forums are held once in three years.
The situation of the roads of capital isn’t so good as well, where there is still a lot of highways, which cannot be called either than carriage roads. True, that the present akim of the city Imangali Tasmagambetov tries to improve them. However, and the renewed streets are flooded after the slightest rain because there is no rainwater disposal in Astana like in Selinograd. The Astana yards present a sorry spectacle, which show the reverse side of the sparkling city in outward appearance.There is a natural emptiness painted with colours of primordial parking bay behind the brilliance of the shop windows and the splendour of the facades. The problem of providing water is in great need of competent and weighed solution because what now runs from the Astana taps can be called as water only out of politeness. All these and many other question require the soonest and systematic rehabilitation.
Whatever the situation is, the city changes constantly and is  filled with new buildings and new people. Not only the officials expecting favour from government, but also the searchers of happiness from the all parts of Kazakhstan and other republics of CIS arrive here. Astana is very advantageous from the point of view of carreer especially for the politicians. We will say that the governor of the capital is always  before the president’s eyes. The leader of the country lives here, per se, builds this city, visits building sites permanently. Therefore, the governor has got all the chances to show himself before president.
Adilbek Dzhaksibekov-is the first akim of new capital. He has been positioned as a person knowing economy and competent business-manager to the moment of his appointment. Although it is not accepted to tell, but the corporation “Tsesna”, organized in 1988 on the basis of trading depot “Tselinograd supply”, is the achievement of Dzhaksybekov. He turned the commercial center into the large industrial and financial company, which realizes the investment activity, consulting, wholesale and retail trades and engaged in producing beer. After becoming the manager of higher grade, Dzhaksybekov was the first to be nominated for much higher (State) level of management. He left the business formally by transferring to the government though he continues to control his empire, which is now run by his brother.
Being the akim, Adilbek Dzhaksybekov has selected very tough line of performing the orders of president. In 1997, when most of the people didn’t trust that Akmola would become the main city of the country, he had to prepare the plain town for the presentation so that the world’s political establishment could evaluate new Kazakhstani capital. He was faced with burdens of prolonged relocations and hundreds of large and small problems, which had to be solved in a frantic rush since Akmola with its sluggishness was parting with its provinciality. The present appearance of the old part of city was formed in his governing. The informed people say that the governor had to manage the gigantic building even being under the drip right in his office without stopping “analysis of the flights” with sluggish performers. By the way, most of the people who used to work with Dzhaksybekov in one field are well aware of his ability to “tear a strip”. Therefore, today nobody can say that he failed his task. The decayed buildings on the central avenues of old Akmola was faced with stylish panels for presentation, but on the yards the guests were met with the shameful peeling front doors. At that time the people of Akmola said reproachfully: “The face has been washed, but something has been forgotten”.
The longevity of Dzhaksybekov on this position within six years is explained by the fact that the actual akim of Astana was the president himself those years and Adilbek Ryskeldinovich performed the role of his deputy. The meetings of Nursultan Nazarbaev with the akims of capital’s regions, the discussion of such purely earth matter as a mud on the sidewalks, the problems with sewage and water supply system on such high level are still fresh in our memories. But already in 2003 the situation “president-akim of the capital” has begun changing. The city began to live, to breath and went upwards in its development and he needed self-reliant leader.
Temirhan Dosmuhambetov, former president of the company “Intourist-Kazakhstan”, became the head of the city in June of 2003. Such personnel change was considered quite adequate, the more so because after the movement of capital, the functions of executive officer of the Head of State, which Dosmuhambetov has performed before his appointment, were similiar with the functions of Astana’s Akim. His status was raised to the level of Minister and the member of government specially for mayorship.
Introducing Dosmuhambetov, the president portrayed him as a strong business manager, who would peep in all the angles in order to know the city’s problems personally. The new mayor has been marked with his visits without suite and tie. During one of such visits to the market he was cursed as a usual person. His promises to drop the prices in the markets, which nobody could manage  yet, to broaden the highways and rid the streets of jams, to improve the yards, to reform the peeling coastal river Ishim and to face the urns with stones so that they couldn’t taken away by the wind and finally, to rid the Astana residents of permanent power, gas and water failure, are still memorable. However, these plans went for a burton.
Temirhan Dosmuhambetov has managed to hold in the position of Akim for less than a year. Many people considered his dismissal in march of 2004 absolutely logical. Tha major total of his activity was the rise in price of flour in Astana to the maximum high level in the country-72 tenges for kilo. For comparison: the Statistics agency registered minimum in Uralsk-40 tenges and tha average price in the whole country has made up 53 tenges. The wicked tongues said that the previous akim has got price trip from his predecessor Adilbek Dzhaksybekov, who controls the local bread market through his corporation “Sesna”.
Umirzak Shukeev has replaced Dosmuhamebetov in this position. He was the graduate of Moscow Institute of economy and statistics and postgraduate course of MES and underwent his practical training in akimat of his native South-Kazakhstani region. His progress in the stairs of government service was quite advancing and stable. If to trust the Internet, Umirzak Shukeev owes his ties in Astana in all these things. During his time Sergei Tereshenko, the resident of Shimkent by birth too and one of the most influential officials at the dawn of Kazakshtan’s becoming independence, provided support to Umirzak Shukeev which perhaps promoted Shuekeev’s coming to the position of Astana’s mayor in many ways.
Umirzak Shukeev was the first in the country to decide to create the building cluster in Astana. Under his administration, the shared construction has developed greatly when any person could gather money from the population and promise to build houses on the basis of general confidence. This business, founded in the capital of our country, has flourished unless it was broken by the world’s financial crisis.
During his stay, the parliament accepted the amendment in the law “About the status of capital” relating to the dispensation of lands. The city managers weren’t satisfied with the fact that investors were sometimes too slow in starting the building. Therefore, it was proposed to reduce the deadlines of start of the procedures of returning the lands. That period was marked by the numerous rallies of the capital residents who weren’t glad with the actions of government about demolishing the slum dwellings and mainly the proposed compensations. The population of the capital has increased rapidly because of inflow of Shimkent’s people when Shukeev ruled Astana for two and a half years.
The native of Selinograd Askar Mamin was appointed an akim in September of 2006. The people of capital treating all the changes and appointments with vigilance, have received what they wanted for a long time: their native was at the helm of the city. The Mamin’s accession to office was marked with “defiant” behaviour-he criticised the site development of the capital which the officials before him couldn’t afford especially when they talked about its pride-new administrative-business center stretching out on the left bank of Ishim. He consolidated his words with his work by stopping the development of the whole range of objects.
He began to act by neglecting the unpublished tradition to rest for 100 days. By shuffling the cards in the card batch of the local executive power, Askar Uzakpaevich closed the door of Akimat and went to the streets of the city already with a new team, but he didn’t like them. The new buildings were on the target. He considered that muse had left an architect when he made a draft of the buildings- central avenues resemble cheap dormitory areas, the buildings has the plain and worn out view.At that, this criticism came not from the mouth of amateur-akim is engineer-constructor by his education.
After analysing the situation in the building objects, he proposed the original method of struggle with negligent builders-to make a special “black list” of the companies, violating the regulations and the deadlines of the construction project and then to take the license from the “fined” companies.
Akim passed to the trading from the construction by decreeing to move all the markets to the suburbs of the city. We can say that Askar Uzakpaevich even damaged his own interests for the sake of deserving appearance of the capital. Everybody knows that most of the flourishing territories in trading belonged to Mamin himself in his time. They belonged to his businessmen. We can remember the following promises made by him: “There will be no fluctuations and shocks in the life of capital”. But these words are separated from the work. The traders deported to the suburban Sofievski highway-behind the so-called humpbacked bridge have found themselves in a poor condition. The unfinished even today the bridge cannot handle with the stream of cars, which stand in the jam for hours. The potential customers of the market, who don’t want to lose their time in the congestion, prefer to buy the goods in other places.    
Imangali Tasmagambetov has taken the position of Akim three months before the anniversary of the capital. Everybody turned their eyes on the new governor now when the preparations for the large scale celebration is under way at full speed. President has introduced him as a person who didn’t fail any task. But there were indirect reproaches against Askar Mamin because the administration of the capital  failed to meet the deadlines of objects, timed to this symbolic date.
Therefore president had to take the trump card Imangali Tasmagambetov from his personnel card batch. In his privately taken career of governship there was oil, cultural-economic capitals. And now the political center of the country was in his hands as a basic landmark. The great wave of usual problems worsened by the fact that these are the problems of the capital-the visit card of republic, flavoured with economic recession when the facilities for realization of some city’s projects like the repair works or the road constructions aren’t funded so much, fell upon Imangali Nurgalievich together with anniversary. By receiving the large-scale initiative and  it is planned to present and show the president more than thirty objects to the anniversary of the capital, akim himself works at full speed and hurries the speed of preparations for the celebration-the builders must deliver their objects on a turnkey basis to the beginning of July. We will learn soon whether for the ruin or for the fame the carte-blanche was given to the politician-universal person who demonstrated the aspiration, ability and will to solve the crisis problems.