RIGA, Dec. 14 (Xinhua) -- Opposition members of the Riga city council on Friday made an unsuccessful attempt to unseat the Latvian capital city's mayor amid a developing corruption scandal in Rigas Satiksme municipal transport company.

Latvian media reported earlier that eight arrests were made and over 30 searches conducted in Latvia and Poland this week as part of a sweeping probe launched by Latvian anti-corruption operatives into procurement deals organized by Rigas Satiksme.

The executive board of Rigas Satiksme resigned after the scandal broke and the company's former CEO Leons Bemhens was taken under arrest on Friday.

Responding to this news, the center-right opposition in the Riga city council started collecting signatures under a petition calling for a no confidence motion in mayor Nils Usakovs from left-wing Harmony party.

However, Usakovs made a preemptive move by calling an extraordinary meeting of the city council on Friday evening. The opposition walked out from the meeting ahead of the ballot, which reaffirmed the ruling coalition's confidence in Usakovs as Riga mayor.

Requesting the confidence vote, Usakovs acknowledged that he felt personally responsible for the municipal transport company's troubles.

The Riga mayor also admitted a close bond between the city council and Rigas Satiksme. "Our reputation has been damaged. A heavy shadow has been cast over the city's transport modernization program," the mayor said.

Meanwhile, investigators from the Corruption Prevention Bureau confirmed on Friday that high-ranked city council officials also featured in the Rigas Satiksme corruption probe. Enditem

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