Just when you think it's all quiet on the Eastern front, Vladimir chucks another curve ball into the mix. It would appear that when he's not dancing on the telly, outing McMafioso or dressing monkeys as journalists, he's quite into his politics.
After having a chinwag with Ruben Palazuelos a few weeks back, it didn't occur to me to note whether or not there was a knowing twinkle in his eye when he informed me that El Presidente was in the building. But being head honcho of a football club seems to be infinitely less than the full sum of his true aspirations - Vladimir is running for President of Lithuania.
Without having visited the country, or indeed, being able to rely on the blethers of Google translator for an accurate English write up of their press articles on the subject, it's difficult to gauge whether or not he might be a popular choice for the citizens of Lithuania. However, with very little info to go on it seems that Vladimir might well have been a tycoon of industry but prior to his shenanigans on 'Dancing with the Stars' he was largely unknown. I have no doubt that the barrage of Vlad-related articles published in the Scottish press will, to some extent, have filtered through to the papers in Lithuania and will have given him somewhat of a more tabloid friendly profile but is this enough to get him the 20,000 pre-election votes that are required to validate his candidacy? Will the Lithuanian people respond to this type of publicity when it comes to the serious matter of choosing the head of their government?
I'd attempt to go into the more obvious (and less interesting) obstacles but as I have no grasp whatsoever of the political culture in Lithuania, I can only assume that his business interests and industrial activities may conflict with any political aspirations, not to mention the opportunity for relationships and business deals that would compromise the integrity of any role in government. Rather than make further assumptions on what this might all mean for Hearts, I'm going to steer clear of the 'what ifs' and stick with one tiny little glowing gem of relief that might help soothe the spirits of any nervy Jambos. Put simply, if he was half as dodgy as people have suggested he might be - would he really be running for political office?
Before anyone hoots with laughter at my naivety, I'm well aware that politicians are rarely the most virtuous species but there's a very big difference between having a few skeletons in your closet and being a bonafide crook. It's almost a given these days that the most powerful people in society won't always play nice but if you have something big to hide, exposing yourself to the level of scrutiny that comes with running for political office is hardly the smart way to protect yourself and your interests. There isn't much information available on Vladimir, who he is and where exactly he got his cash, but it's probably safe to assume that if he starts to make any real progress with this campaign to run for President the information floodgates could well be thrown open.
The alternative is that he's just a bit bored and fancies the extra publicity. In any other set of circumstances involving almost any other individual, I wouldn't even consider going down that path but what we have come to understand over the past few years is that with Vladimir, anything is possible. Goodness knows what he's up to but it's going to be fun to watch and see how this one pans out. But for sheer entertainment and services to lunacy alone he'd definitely get my vote.
After having a chinwag with Ruben Palazuelos a few weeks back, it didn't occur to me to note whether or not there was a knowing twinkle in his eye when he informed me that El Presidente was in the building. But being head honcho of a football club seems to be infinitely less than the full sum of his true aspirations - Vladimir is running for President of Lithuania.
Without having visited the country, or indeed, being able to rely on the blethers of Google translator for an accurate English write up of their press articles on the subject, it's difficult to gauge whether or not he might be a popular choice for the citizens of Lithuania. However, with very little info to go on it seems that Vladimir might well have been a tycoon of industry but prior to his shenanigans on 'Dancing with the Stars' he was largely unknown. I have no doubt that the barrage of Vlad-related articles published in the Scottish press will, to some extent, have filtered through to the papers in Lithuania and will have given him somewhat of a more tabloid friendly profile but is this enough to get him the 20,000 pre-election votes that are required to validate his candidacy? Will the Lithuanian people respond to this type of publicity when it comes to the serious matter of choosing the head of their government?
I'd attempt to go into the more obvious (and less interesting) obstacles but as I have no grasp whatsoever of the political culture in Lithuania, I can only assume that his business interests and industrial activities may conflict with any political aspirations, not to mention the opportunity for relationships and business deals that would compromise the integrity of any role in government. Rather than make further assumptions on what this might all mean for Hearts, I'm going to steer clear of the 'what ifs' and stick with one tiny little glowing gem of relief that might help soothe the spirits of any nervy Jambos. Put simply, if he was half as dodgy as people have suggested he might be - would he really be running for political office?
Before anyone hoots with laughter at my naivety, I'm well aware that politicians are rarely the most virtuous species but there's a very big difference between having a few skeletons in your closet and being a bonafide crook. It's almost a given these days that the most powerful people in society won't always play nice but if you have something big to hide, exposing yourself to the level of scrutiny that comes with running for political office is hardly the smart way to protect yourself and your interests. There isn't much information available on Vladimir, who he is and where exactly he got his cash, but it's probably safe to assume that if he starts to make any real progress with this campaign to run for President the information floodgates could well be thrown open.
The alternative is that he's just a bit bored and fancies the extra publicity. In any other set of circumstances involving almost any other individual, I wouldn't even consider going down that path but what we have come to understand over the past few years is that with Vladimir, anything is possible. Goodness knows what he's up to but it's going to be fun to watch and see how this one pans out. But for sheer entertainment and services to lunacy alone he'd definitely get my vote.
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