Chapter 752: Gouging Out (2)
Baku’s presidential palace, regardless of the complicated national issue, was still showing off its splendid figure.
In front of the presidential palace, Youngho glanced at the surrounding view and stepped forward as he was greeted by Aliyev.
President Aliyev, who saw Youngho’s stern expression, took away a smile off his face.
He prepared everything to welcome the Queen and the royal party, but it was unusual for Youngho to visit the presidential palace alone.
After a while, only the two sat in the reception room of the palace without any attendees.
By the time the silence between the two was getting too long over tea, Youngho opened his mouth.
“Mr. President. Did you hear what happened in England?”
“I’m ashamed.”
Aliyev was ashamed of the situation.
Aliyev’s position was shaken for a while after Azerbaijan became a federal state, but it was stabilized because of the support of the Kazakh royal family so far.
However, the whole world was talking about his close aide’s issue, so he could not raise his face. The media argued that if a bank president committed such irregularities, he had the protection of his superiors.
His approval rating was also plummeting, so he had been restless these days.
“Your Highness, I am very sorry for what happened. I trusted my aides, but I didn’t expect them to do this. I’ll take immediate legal action and freeze the bank president’s property.”
It was a typical move of cutting one’s own tail off.
There were more than one or two people involved in the matter, but he was trying to cut off the bank president and conclude the case.
Freezing his property would also be meaningless. If he had siphoned off public funds, he would have used different international banks to divide his money or bought real estates in all parts of Europe, not only in London.
Related countries were likely to squirm without returning money like Britain.
It would only be partially recovered after a bitter legal battle, but not before Azerbaijan’s reputation fell on the ground.
Youngho, who sighed, uttered a word as if he was making a sentence.
“I think it’s time for you to take responsibility. It’s not going to be solved at the level of the royal family. If you understand the people and think about Azerbaijan’s future, you should make a decision. The Queen is traveling around the country to try to win the hearts of the people, but the public’s response is not the same as before.”
At Youngho’s words, Aliyev’s face was stiffened.
He was so shocked that he was out of breath.
This was because Aliyev was well aware of the reaction of the people.
The evidence was that the approval rating, which once stood at more than 80 percent, fell to the 70 percent level by the time the nation was incorporated into the federal system and was now less than 50 percent.
But if the royal family was giving up, there was only one answer.
“Your Highness, I can’t back down like this. Don’t you think I should be the one to take responsibility for what I have made?”
Aliyev probably needed time to launder the money he had been stealing, not to fix his wrongdoings.
He was not going to back down quietly.
In that case, Youngho needed to be a little harsher.
“You’ve had plenty of time to reform, and we’ve had enough of your close associates’ corruption. The people seem to think you have no will to reform.”
Although Youngho was putting the people first, this meant that the royal family was on the same page.
Aliyev’s hands were shaking from the shock.
Youngho kept on.
“Make a decision when you have a chance. If you do something wrong, you may be judged by the people. The reason I visited the presidential palace today is to deliver that message.”
“Can’t you help me a little?”
“Our royal family is in a truce with China. We can’t just keep looking after Your Excellency when we don’t know when another war will break out. And we need to help the independence of Uyghur and Tibet.”
“Your Highness, you know, I’ve been burning my passion for Azerbaijan. But if I step down in disgrace, I will be remembered as a sinner in history.”
“I’m telling you this in advance not to be a sinner in history. You can save the lives of countless people in your decision. If your hard-core supporters resist, Azerbaijan will retreat 10 years.”
In a way, it was also an opportunity for Aliyev to get out.
He could be brought to court if he insisted on being in power.
If he apologized to the public and stepped down quietly, he might be able to rely on the people’s sympathy, but the whole family would be humiliated as soon as he became greedy.
Youngho hurried out of the presidential palace because he thought he had given enough warning.
In case of an emergency, the Royal Bodyguard forces in Baku surrounded the presidential palace, but no such unsavory event happened.
***
Fatima showed off the dignity of the Kazakh royal family at home and abroad, visiting not only Azerbaijan but also Georgia and Armenia.
It was intended to revamp Azerbaijan’s image, which had been tarnished by recent unsavory events, and instill pride in its people.
Both countries enthusiastically welcomed the visit of the Queen of Kazakhstan.
Zeynep’s hospital train played a big role in shaking off the resentment toward Azerbaijan by going around Armenia and other remote villages in Georgia for medical service.
While Fatima was traveling both at home and abroad, Armed Forces Day events proceeded as scheduled in Baku.
The royal guards also contributed to the festive mood by entering the port of Baku in large numbers under the pretext of Armed Forces Day events and participating in the march of the city.
However, for the Aliyev government, the participation of the royal guards in the events would have been seen as a show of force.
As pressure was put on both inside and outside, Aliyev finally raised his hand to surrender.
Aliyev secretly visited the royal villa at Serbian Ranch.
“Your Highness, there’s no place for me and my family to go. What should I do?”
He was seeking an asylum as he was determined to put down his power.
He may want to go to an advanced country, but if he did, he may be repatriated to Azerbaijan under the extradition treaty.
However, he could not go to Middle Eastern countries or Africa.
“Do you have anything to say before that? I think we need to do something that the people can understand so that you can stay comfortable even if you defect to another country.”
At Youngho’s words, Aliyev flinched.
He did not bother to ask what he would do with the slush funds, but how could he not understand Youngho’s words?
Aliyev, who was looking at Youngho’s face, opened his mouth with determination.
“You’d know if you check, but I’ve already put any funds illegally collected in the national treasury. And the real estate and deposits that my family has overseas have been made by their efforts, so there’s nothing I can do about it.”
He was trying to cover the sky with his hands.
Even children would know that the wealth was created by the unparalleled power of the president.
“The reason why we didn’t track former Kazakhstan’s President Nazarbayev when he went to exile was because his wealth was in the country. We pretended not to know when he defected to Russia with only some cash. There was a lot of public opinions that we should take all of his money back, but I stopped it.”
It was a warning for him to leave everything behind.
It was also a promise that Youngho would protect his life in exile regardless of the public opinion.
No country would be able to protect the Aliyev family if the Kazakh royal family was determined to take measures to retrieve them.
Aliyev was devastated by the possibility of the royal family releasing intelligence agents and royal forces to harm his family.
“Your Highness, please help me out for all the friendship we had.”
Aliyev sat close enough as if he were to cling on Youngho’s trousers.
He finally realized that the Kazakh royal family was already preparing for this.
“Okay, I recommend Russia for asylum. I have a special relationship with Putin, so he’ll do me a favor. But please tell us all about your family’s slush funds and corruption of your aides. Keep in mind that all the money belongs to the people of Azerbaijan. Then I’ll make sure you spend your old age comfortably with your family.”
Knowing that there was no more way out, Aliyev lowered his head and was preoccupied for a long time.
After a while, he looked more comfortable.
From the look of his face, he was determined to put everything down.
“I’ll trust you since you promised to look after my family. I just hope that the people don’t forget that my father and I did so much for the development of the nation.”
“People already know that you’ve worked so hard for Azerbaijan following your predecessor. And history will recognize your beautiful exit. You’ve led Azerbaijan this far in transition. Thank you for your hard work.”
Tears streamed from Aliyev’s eyes when Youngho finished speaking.
It could be a tear of remorse or self-pity to let go of power.
He would not have let go of power this vainly, but because he knew so well that he could not do anything against the huge wall of the Kazakh royal family, he had no choice.
Youngho felt sorry for Aliyev’s tears, but he deserved it considering the harmful effects of his long-term dictatorship. Countless people were disadvantaged and killed by dictatorship.
It was for Azerbaijan, but in the end, it was the president and his followers who were busier to take care of their own interests.
Aliyev, whose emotions had subsided after a while, opened his mouth cautiously.
“Your Highness, do you happen to have a blacklist?”
Youngho was puzzled at his question.
“There is no such thing. We only have the list of people involved in corruption that our intelligence agency investigated.”
Aliyev seemed to want to take care of even a few of his aides, but that could never happen.
Since he was the president, he would be allowed asylum for national harmony, but the rest would be judged by law.
“I’d like to save some people.”
It was just as expected.
“Your Excellency, I was determined to face a backlash for letting you go only for national reconciliation. As you know, there is no royal authority in Azerbaijan. Further intervention by the royal family will also cause problems with your safety. Also, I’m asking you to seek asylum because I don’t want Azerbaijan to lose its national prestige if you stand in court. If the royal family is found to have stepped up and sought asylum, I honestly don’t have the confidence in what to do next. But I still decided to help you.”
“…”
If Aliyev stood at court, the backlash from his followers would be extreme.
There could be bloodshed.
It was rather better for the Aliyev family to go abroad to help Azerbaijan.
“I understand your situation. Thank you for your help.”
“I’m glad I could help you.”
Aliyev, who emotionally thanked him, left the royal villa with his shoulders drooping.
Youngho, who saw Aliyev off, was also in a mixed mood.