Recently it was Citizen’s Day, and our grand politician Tõnis Lukas went around schools manipulating young people so they wouldn’t step on his or other older career politicians’ toes in the future — because apparently that doesn’t fit into our political culture and values.
Since both Tõnis Lukas and various Tartu schools accused me of “only yelling, labelling and insulting without arguments”, I decided to once again publish my position and perspective without any “ugly words”, and explain publicly how we actually ended up in this situation.
BUT BEFORE THAT…
Let’s briefly look at the baggage Tõnis Lukas brings to the position of council chairman:
The ERM audits speak for themselves:
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Public procurements not carried out.
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Missing documents in the archives.
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Souvenirs ordered from an association with his own background ties.
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A restaurant whose numbers journalists are not allowed to see.
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Contract agreements that are basically employment contracts while the official positions in the structure remain empty.
Is this the transparent and value-based leadership they talk about to the public?
Should a person with such a CV really be the chairman of the council of Estonia’s second-largest city?
https://www.delfi.ee/…/aadu-must-erm-i-auditist-uldise…
https://arileht.delfi.ee/…/erm-keeldub-restorani…
https://arileht.delfi.ee/…/71474801/erm-vassis-lepingutega
I have also received claims from the same period regarding how he treated employees there, but since these are unverified, it would be irresponsible to publish them today.
A week ago he wrote in the press about the dangers of “neo-Stalinism” and warned how a “nearly thirty-year-old man” (me) is a huge problem because I dare to swear while entertaining people on my live show.
And who jumps in to defend him on Facebook?
Not average residents of Tartu, but the mouthpieces of a competing party and old monument-men who long for the times when politics was done behind closed doors and no one asked uncomfortable questions.
https://www.ohtuleht.ee/…/tonis-lukas-teda-monitanud…
In my view, the era of old career politicians is over.
Power must not remain stagnant in the hands of those who have sat in the same seats for years and collect thousands — if not tens of thousands — of euros every month in taxpayer money.
A question for you:
Should politicians be judged by how smooth their speech is and how often they say the word “values”, or by what they have actually accomplished and whom or what they have stood up for?
Yes, I swear and I am sharply straightforward, but the real problem is not my vocabulary — it’s that they fear the moment when young people truly take power and the old circle loses their comfortable salaries, official cars and crony networks.
🔥 HOW DID WE GET HERE?
My skis crossed with Tõnis Lukas right before the elections, after the TikTok video “scandal”, which — due to what happened in the USA — was turned into a national news story in Estonia.
The next day, Tõnis Lukas demanded by phone that I withdraw my candidacy. When I refused, this same highly educated grand politician began manipulating and threatening me with a criminal case because of that TikTok video.
I told him clearly that this would not work on me and I would not withdraw my candidacy.
However, as many have seen and heard, I publicly apologized for that so-called “call to action”, because although I still consider it a joke, I understand that a real call to commit violence against someone is not within societal norms. The fact that it wasn’t a real call is confirmed by the police decision.
https://tartu.postimees.ee/…/politsei-ei-alustanud-kris…
At the same time, I must mention that one of the main “defenders” within Isamaa’s Tartu leadership was at that moment the head of the Isamaa Tartu region. The comments in the media suggesting that “he orchestrated the whole thing” are not true.
I realized that Tõnis Lukas cannot be a partner when, after the results, I waited for an apology from him on election night — which never came. I handed him the mayor’s seat on a silver platter, and instead, a few days later, he announced on ERR evening news that I would not be part of the new faction, and later he also handed the mayor’s seat to the competitor.
This led to my first and only “counterattack”, which included my statement to the media that “Tõnis Lukas sold Tartu to the Reform Party”, and on my entertainment-style live show I called him a stupid spineless bonehead and a bastard.
Since I have not given a single interview to any media outlet for over a month after my remarks, one journalist simply snapped and decided last week to bring the topic up again — as if I had randomly started attacking Tõnis again — but that is not true at all.
https://tartu.postimees.ee/…/selgrootu-tollmokk-kris…
Tõnis Lukas accused me of “attacking” him a third time, referring to the “TEEMA” podcast, recorded also a month ago, where I said that today, due to Tartu’s decisions, Tõnis Lukas is, in my view, the least likeable politician to me. That podcast was only uploaded last week.
https://tartu.postimees.ee/…/tonis-lukase-sonul-peab…
In summary, all my remarks were caused by Tõnis Lukas’s political decisions to hand over the mayor’s office, and his personal decision to attack me to prevent me from joining the new faction. It is also important to note that the leadership has not supported the idea of excluding me from the faction.
https://tartu.postimees.ee/…/isamaa-kutsus-vastuolulise…
I have deliberately kept a low profile to avoid adding fuel to the fire, because it is clear that Tõnis Lukas does not understand how the media manipulates and shapes him, and how he has fallen into the trap set by private media.
To conclude, I have repeatedly tried — through members of Isamaa — to get in contact with Tõnis Lukas so he would agree to meet and resolve the situation (the first attempt was over a month ago). He has not agreed to a single attempt.
It is unfortunate that an experienced politician has chosen a personal vendetta and carries it out by manipulating students and teachers in schools, instead of meeting me directly to resolve the matter. This failed manipulation is confirmed by the feedback from average Tartu youngsters who attended those “guest lessons” in high schools.
How did we as a society even get to a point where an imposed “tolerance society” has pushed people even further apart?
It is obvious that forced ideology does not create support — it creates a new generation that pushes back even harder.
In short, what happened is a clear example of today’s society and how times have changed, and how older generations often do not grasp what is happening in private media and social media.
🍻 THE CURRENT SITUATION
I am willing to forget, but I will not forgive.
I will not collect votes for him in the 2027 parliamentary elections, nor will I vote for him as chairman of the Tartu city council.
To fight and win for Estonia,
Kris Kärner 🍀
