As an expat living in Riga for some time now, I've seen some pretty corrupt and outlandish moves, but none as outrageous as the new VAT increase coupled with the multi billion Euro loan from the IMF and other institutions. It just doesn't make any sense, to lower salaries, fire people raise heating and cost of living when they're getting much more money than any other time in history and raising taxes to boot.
That coupled with a former veterinarian finance minister whose interview with Bloomberg was a complete laughing stock both locally and abroad, shows so clearly that no one at the top has any idea 1) what is going on and 2) what to do. It's no wonder that there have been petitions (albeit from the Russian population) asking for Sweden to take over Latvia again.
It's just outrageous the way things have taken such a drastic turn for the ridiculous. I'm waiting for the public to really start taking matters into their own hands and demanding and forcing the resignation of, well, pretty much everyone at the top. In all my time here I've yet to see some good, smart moves from leaders that actually benefit the people they were elected to serve, and throwing more money at a corrupt system isn't going to solve anything at all. But I guess that's what happens when all the educated people flee the country for better jobs, you're left with the dregs.
Regards,
Renolds Krumins
Riga, Latvia
