Russia: The Reasons Why

Ismail Y. Yusupov, 48, knew that he had a tough row to hoe when he was named Communist Party boss in the problem-plagued virgin lands of Kazahkstan (TIME, Jan. 4). But he could hardly have guessed the extent of the mess he would inherit from his purged predecessor. Last week Yusupov published a report charging that more than $600 million had been wasted during the last three years on ill-conceived projects; no fewer than 16,139 regional officials were fired last year alone, 2,340 of them for stealing and embezzling $1,270,000. A gang of crooks led by the chief of the Tselinograd Trade Board faked reports, rigged phony prices, and sold meat, butter and automobiles on the black market; in Pavlodar, three men managed to make off with no fewer than 300,000 bottles of wine and vodka. The entire party and government leadership of the Kzyl Orda region masterminded a ring of cattle rustlers: the local Communist chief organized blackjack games and set off an "epidemic of gambling.''

Since Yusupov's own head was now on the block, there was almost a plaintive note in his concluding question: "Can one be expected to achieve good farming results under such conditions?'' He had a ready answer: "Of course not," for this kind of thing explained why Kazahkstan last year delivered 8.2 million tons of grain to the state instead of the planned 14.1 million tons.