Vladimir Zhirinovsky, the outspoken leader of Russia's ultra-nationalist Liberal Democratic Party (LDPR), promised on Wednesday that some 10,000 officials will be jailed after next presidential elections in March.
"You still do not know who will be the president. It will be a big surprise," Zhirinovsky, who is expected to run in the 2012 presidential election, said in an address to the Russian parliament's lower house, the State Duma.
"We will begin arrests on Monday, March 5 at 10:00 (Moscow time). Ten thousand officials are included in the list, which I have already signed," he said.
The list of the officials to be arrested in the future, he said, includes some people from the Communist Party, "a few" from the ruling United Russia Party and some "traitors" from his LDPR party.
Moreover, one third of the list is comprised of governors of Russian regions, while half of the list is made up of members of the Russian parliament, he said.
"This will be your last New Year to celebrate at large," Zhirinovsky told State Duma deputies.
He asked the State Duma Speaker Boris Gryzlov to protect him against numerous lawsuits.
In particular, he mentioned a lawsuit initiated against him by former chairman of the Russian parliament's upper house and leader of the A Just Russia party Sergei Mironov, who is also on Zhirinovsky's list of officials to be arrested.
"I am accusing them of corruption and they are taking me to court. I ask you, speaker of the State Duma, to protect me. Because Mironov illegally occupies a seat here... He is also taking me to court. It turned out that Mironov and his party are ideal and I am the bad guy," Zhirinovsky said.
Zhirinovsky earlier accused Mironov of selling seats in the Russian parliament's upper house while he was head of the Federation Council.
Zhirinovsky also faces numerous lawsuits filed by former Moscow Mayor Yury Luzhkov.
"Both Luzhkov and Mironov will eventually end up in jail. I promise you this after March 5," he added.
Zhirinovsky's threats are unlikely to keep Russia's political elite awake at night. In the last presidential election he received just 9 percent of the vote, far behind President Dmitry Medvedev on 70 percent and the Communist leader Gennady Zuganov on 18 percent.
