HELSINKI, Dec 29 Former Estonian Prime Minister and former Tallinn Mayor Edgar Savisaar died on Thursday at the age of 72, the press service of the Estonian government announced on social networks.
«Edgar Savisaar died on Thursday at the age of 72 in the Ida-Tallinn Central Hospital. Savisaar was one of the prominent figures of the Estonian political landscape, he played an important role in the construction of the newly restored independence of Estonia,» the message says.
According to the broadcasting portal ERR, Savisaar was one of the key figures in the restoration of Estonia's independence, a legendary politician and one of the founders of the Popular Front, prime minister in 1990-1992, chairman of the Center Party. He was also Minister of the Interior and Minister of Economy and Communications. From 2001 to 2004 he served as mayor of Tallinn. In 2007, he again became the mayor of Tallinn.
In 2016, an extraordinary congress of the then opposition Center Party elected Jüri Ratas as the new chairman of the party, who replaced the founder and long-term leader of the party, Edgar Savisaar, who refused to take part in the party congress.
Savisaar's influence on the party he founded weakened due to corruption charges brought against him, he was removed from the post of mayor of Tallinn. Savisaar has repeatedly denied all allegations and stated that they are political in nature. In December 2018, the Estonian court dismissed the criminal case against Savisaar due to his health problems.