“Stuck in the nineties: the chairman of the parent committee was accused of pocketing the common fund.”

In the small village of Erzovka, near Volgograd, a scandal erupted over fundraising for a 9th grade graduation. One of the mothers is outraged by the amount of the extortion. “For that kind of money you can buy half of Erzovka and still have some left,” she claims and demands a report from the chairman of the parent committee: receipts or at least an estimate. In response, the activist mother sends her off in Russian swear words and claims that she doesn’t owe anyone anything, and that the money is hers.

At the end of last year, the parent committee, represented by the only mother, Oksana T., established that 5 thousand should be chipped in for graduation. And this is only for organizational needs. There will also be a banquet for which you will have to pay extra. There were no objections. But as the solemn date approached, questions began to arise to the chairman of the maternity committee: isn’t the ninth grade living too grandly?

– When the amount was announced at the end of the year, I obediently chipped in. There was no time to delve into the details,” the mother of a ninth-grader, Elena S., told MK. “But then I began to realize. The fact is that I work in Moscow. My colleague, whose son is also in the ninth grade, but at the Moscow Lyceum, told me that they chip in 1,860 rubles for graduation. And that includes fireworks. And this amount seems huge to her. And here is some kind of Erzovka. I decided to find out what our money would be used for.

When Elena returned from Moscow to visit her father’s house, she asked her daughter what was included in these five thousand. The schoolgirl answered: flowers, bows, ribbon and a ball. Surprised, Elena began to write a message to the chairman of the parent committee asking for an explanation of the price ratio.

– There are 24 children in our class. All the parents chipped in five thousand. This means Oksana lost 120 thousand. How many balls and ribbons can you buy? – Elena is indignant.

While she was waiting for a response from Oksana, Elena herself conducted an economic investigation. She found out that graduation ribbons can be bought in bulk on the Internet: 25 pieces for 1,650 rubles. The situation is similar with balloons and bows. Flowers in Erzovka are all purchased from a wholesale warehouse.

-Where does the rest go? In our village, the average salary is 19,000 rubles. Where do these amounts come from? – Mom is perplexed.

In response to her question, Elena heard a lot of bad words from the chairman of the parent committee. Oksana allegorically told her not to get into her wallet. The money is supposedly hers. She is not obliged to report to anyone. And if Elena has something against it, then she can get her five thousand back, but her daughter will do without the ribbon, bows and balls.

– I don’t want to take money for fear that Oksana will bully my daughter. She will cheat the teachers, they will give her bad grades,” argues the graduate’s mother. – But I want Oksana to post receipts or show cost estimates. What are you planning to spend on?

According to Elena, Oksana T. became the chairwoman of the maternity committee even when their children went to kindergarten together. And since then she has always been raising money.

– Either she collects for linoleum, then for curtains, or for security. And not once during this time did she post checks or report, Elena recalls. – And this despite the fact that these expenses for kindergartens and schools are paid by the federal budget. Extortion has long been prohibited at school.

Elena is a mother of many children. She has five children. Ever since kindergarten, she refused to chip in for parental needs, which she notified Oksana about. For the sake of her daughter’s graduation, the woman made an exception. But she is ready to pay expenses, not the beautiful life of the chairman.

– Oksana is forever stuck in the nineties. She robs her parents and leads a beautiful life. She opened her own passenger transportation business. She lives in grand style and showers everyone with slop from head to toe if anyone dares to object to her. This won’t work with me,” says Elena.

To hear the second side of the conflict, the MK correspondent called the chairman of the parent committee Oksana. In response, he was also sent an obscene message and was caught trying to look into someone else’s wallet.

– What do you care? This is my money. I don’t have to give checks to anyone. My parents and I have complete trust,” said Oksana.

As expected, the amount of five thousand for graduation in the ninth grade was not final. The parents agreed to throw in another 4 thousand for the banquet.

– Where in Erzovka can you eat for 4 thousand per person? – Elena asks. – I sometimes go to a restaurant in Moscow. But I pay a maximum of one and a half thousand per person. And then – with alcohol. Children, of course, will not drink. What are they going to feed them?

It is interesting that, except for the troublemaker Elena, none of the parents of the graduating class demanded a report from Oksana. “They are just afraid of her and her husband. Her husband shot people. For which he served a criminal sentence. Nobody wants to get involved,” says Elena. She intends to continue her fight for the accountability of the head of the maternity committee.

In fact, the position of chairman of the parent committee is not as toy as it seems at first glance. The head is accountable, and the law imposes serious obligations on him, says lawyer Vasily Burdyug.

– The Parents’ Committee is an unregistered association of citizens. Its activities fall under the federal law “On Public Associations.” This law obliges the chairman of the association to report on the amounts spent to the participants. Refusal to do this is subject to civil liability. If the members of the association find facts of theft in the report, then the actions of the head will already fall under criminal liability.