The corruption of voters in the Republic of Moldova has undergone a significant evolution with the appearance of Ilan Shor on the public arena. He managed to combine traditional methods of influencing the electorate, such as distributing buckwheat or rice packages, organizing concerts with international stars, with more sophisticated strategies that exploit poverty and social weaknesses of the population, expert Igor Boţan stated in a debate hosted by IPN.
The social shops, which have become a symbol of Ilan Shor's "philanthropy", are in fact a well-developed political mechanism. "Having a network of 200 social stores and 400,000 beneficiaries with special cards means an impressive pool of voters who are easy to manipulate. This model of social "assistance" managed to create a bond of dependency between low-income voters and the politician who offers them these benefits," explained Igor Boțan.
"In the early 1990s, politicians offered voters rice, oil, or other basic food products in exchange for votes. Ilan Shor was the one who raised this practice to a higher level. The second stage began in the early 2010s when politicians organized large-scale concerts with famous artists, attracting a large number of people and creating a sense of belonging to a community that promised well-being. At another stage, Ilan Shor launched the idea of social stores, which directly target the basic needs of low-income citizens, thus strengthening his position in the poor electorate.”
Ilan Shor appeared on the public arena after the theft of the billion in which he was involved. "As soon as a businessman experiences problems with justice, he becomes a politician," said Igor Boțan, explaining the phenomenon.
"Shor became an important public figure when he was involved in what became known as the "Theft of the Billion" – a financial scandal that severely affected the banking system in the Republic of Moldova. As a result of this scandal, over US$1 billion dollars was withdrawn from three banks, including Banca de Economii, which was a systemic bank, the money being transferred to foreign accounts through a complex money laundering scheme,” said Boţan.
Despite the fact that he was convicted by a court of first instance for his role in the "Theft of the Billion", Ilan Shor managed to keep his political influence, being elected mayor of Orhei and then member of the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova. "He manipulated through the needs of vulnerable citizens to build a solid pool of supporters, especially through social projects that seem to offer quick solutions for the poor and concrete sections,” noted the expert.
Ilan Shor, initially known only as a sponsor of the Milsami football club and the husband of a Russian singer, quickly became an important figure in the public landscape of the Republic of Moldova. "The first moment that attracted the public's attention was his extravagant wedding party in 2011, when the Palace of the Republic, which then housed Parliament, was rented by Shor and the legislative activity during the entire month of September was blocked,” stated Igor Boțan.
Subsequently, in 2012, Shor took control of three banks, and in 2013 he became the chairman of the board of directors of Banca de Economii. In the same year, the Chisinau International Airport started to be managed by companies based in Khabarovsk, which were linked to Shor. In 2014, the stealing of US$1 billion from the banking system shook the country, and subsequent investigations highlighted his connection with Vladimir Plahotniuc, Shor being the key figure through which these financial schemes were orchestrated. After he was accused in the theft of the billion case, in 2019, and after Vlad Plahotniuc left, Ilan Shor also left shortly afterward and since then he has coordinated the social and political activity remotely. It is curious that he did not return to the country even though his party, through the parliamentary group, participated in the government of the country together with the Party of Socialists for a long enough period,” Igor Boțan.
“Ilan Shor is the exponent of political corruption in the Republic of Moldova and, in this portrait, I want to present things in such a way so that this is obvious. The Shor phenomenon is a real one and must be studied, investigated and condemned. He left Israel even though, as a citizen of this state, he could have manifested himself in the battles with the terrorist groups Hamas and Hezbollah. He transferred to the Russian Federation even though he had criminal records there, also receiving Russian citizenship as a matter of urgency. This is because he proved to be more useful for Russia’s interests in the Republic of Moldova than other pro-Russian political actors, Igor Boţan explained.
The public debate entitled “What is the “Shor phenomenon" based on?" was the 316th installment of IPN’s project "Developing political culture through public debates”. The project is implemented with support from the German Hanns Seidel Foundation.
