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Ukrainians launch hashtag drive to say 'goodbye' to Poroshenko

Poroshenko has been recently hit by a major corruption scandal

KIEV, March 31. /TASS/. Ukrainian voters have kicked off a hashtag campaign on social networks dubbed "the final goodbye" in the Ukrainian language, expressing their hope that Pyotr Poroshenko won’t be re-elected in the presidential race.

"Each vote can be a decisive one. It’s up to you to choose, otherwise they will decide for you. Go to the polls," Ukrainian Justice Minister Elena Lukash wrote on her Facebook page, posting photos from a ballot station with a hashtag "the final goodbye."

This campaign has been popular among prominent Ukrainians, including former head of President Viktor Yanukovich’s administration Andrei Portnov. The term "the final goodbye" is closely associated with Poroshenko, who uses it quite often to 'pepper' his public speeches. He usually employs this phrase when he speaks about the need to sever ties with Russia.

Poroshenko has been recently hit by a major corruption scandal around the state defense company Ukroboronprom, which flared up three weeks ahead of the March 31 presidential election. A journalist investigation uncovered fraudulent schemes involving shell companies, which defense enterprises and high-ranking officials used to inflate prices for supplying components both from Ukrainian military depots and also allegedly from Russia. These corruption deals involved Poroshenko’s allies, including Igor Gladkovsky, the son of First Deputy Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council Oleg Gladkovsky.