Odesa Activists Demand More Military Funding at 'Money for Armed Forces' Rally

On February 22, the participants of the "Money for the Armed Forces" campaign gathered for a traditional rally demanding more budget funds to help the military.

The protesters held placards with the words "Money for the Armed Forces", "Stop stealing from the Armed Forces", "Drones, not stadiums", "During the war, the house is not whitewashed, it is defended", "We demand mobilization of local budget resources", the USI publication reported.

The protesters also called for a fair distribution of the local budget and the inappropriateness of spending money on other than military needs.

The protesters are in favor of increasing assistance to the Ukrainian Defense Forces, they demand transparency and accountability from the city council, as well as feedback from the military units that have received assistance from the local council.

In particular, people suggest that

• the city council website should have transparent and accessible information on the possibility of receiving assistance from the local council to military units, as well as instructions on how to do so (a copy of the request, necessary documents);
• send official letters to each military unit explaining how to receive assistance from the local council;
• simplify the procedure for receiving assistance.

On February 1, the participants of the "Money for the Armed Forces" campaign gathered on Saturday for a traditional meeting near the Bristol Hotel in the center of Odesa, which was hit by a Russian missile the day before.

On January 18, the participants of the "Money for the Armed Forces" campaign this time presented Mayor Gennadiy Trukhanov with a cake on his birthday.

The first action took place on August 28, 2023, when the Odesa City Council approved the allocation of 106 million for the repair of the Kyiv District Court and the head of the Monster Corporation charity foundation , Kateryna Nozhevnikova , announced a picket outside the Odesa City Council. But this year, August 28 is a Wednesday.

The single picket of the Odesa volunteer turned into a mass rally because of the desire of Odessans to support the volunteer.

More than 100 people came to the rally, and since then the rallies have become a tradition. Kateryna Nozhevnikova also stated that she was ready to come to the city hall every day to prevent such senseless spending of budget funds.

In November 2023, Kateryna Nozhevnikova decided to stop protesting, satisfied that the Odesa City Council had decided to cancel the procurement. However, she did not call on other protesters to stop their actions, leaving it to their own discretion.

In July 2024, an initiative group of citizens who hold "Money for the Armed Forces" rallies every Saturday met with Odesa Mayor Hennadiy Trukhanov.

The activists were told that at the end of June, MPs voted to amend the law to allow municipalities to make purchases for all units of the Armed Forces. The law is currently awaiting the signature of the President of Ukraine, but for it to work, amendments to the Budget Code are also needed.

Кирило Бойко