After President Kuchma’s announcement that he intends to
submit Valery Pustovoitenko’s candidacy as head of a new Cabinet, immediately
following the inauguration, December 1, the acting Premier held a number
of meetings with Verkhovna Rada factions and groups.
In particular, Mr. Pustovoitenko met with the NDP faction
led by Oleksandr Karpov and Labor Ukraine leader Mykhailo Syrota. These
meetings actually mean that the Premier is set to make his earlier promise
to stay in office for ten years a reality. Now he is busy forming that
parliamentary majority which is mandatory for (a) at least getting back
his post after formal resignation (under the Constitution, after inauguration
the Cabinet must resign), and (b) at best getting the executive to cooperate
with the legislature.
Meanwhile, Parliament’s largest faction, the Communists,
has no intention of backing Mr. Pustovoitenko’s candidacy. “I think that
we have reason enough not to support this candidacy,” declared one of its
members, Petro Tsybenko, chairman of the pensioners’ committee, reminding
that the Communist faction has twice initiated the Cabinet’s and its head’s
ouster, reports Interfax Ukraine.
Indeed, the Communists appear to have reasons for this
approach that are more serious than a digression into the history of CPU-Cabinet
relationships. According to Oleksandr Yemets, leader of Reforms-Center,
“Pustovoitenko’s nomination means an opportunity to unite Parliament’s
Communist center. A number of other candidates will most likely rely on
an understanding with the Communists, because they will be hard put to
find support in any other part of the Verkhovna Rada. The Communists, disciplined
as they are, usually provide a lot of votes; from what we know, a number
of candidates premier are consulting with them,”
Of course, assuming that a Left majority will be formed
in Parliament (as promised by Speaker Oleksandr Tkachenko), the Communists
should take a clear and hard stand with regard to the future government
even now. Yet the Left shows no such confidence in their own strength —
as evidenced by Comrade Tsybenko who said that the CPU faction will get
down to the issue (deliberation of Pustovoitenko’s candidacy — Ed. )
after Leonid Kuchma’s official statement, and the latter may take place
only after the inauguration. This stand obviously contradicts their declared
opposition to Mr. Pustovoitenko’s candidacy.
Socialist leader Oleksandr Moroz was more cautious than
his recent campaign allies: the Left Center will determine its attitude
to the Premier’s candidacy after the President submits it to Parliament.
He also pointed out that in the event of a pro-presidential majority in
Parliament “there will be no problem with supporting the candidacy; the
one submitted will receive our support.”
When asked by The Day about the prospects for forming
a parliamentary majority, Volodymyr Filenko (Reforms-Center) replied, “The
process of forming a majority in Verkhovna Rada is useful and necessary;
we have long said so. Yet the realities are such that, after all is said
and done, neither the Left nor Right can provide a stable, solid majority.
However, I believe that after Leonid Kuchma’s victory and Hromada’s actual
collapse the Left will stand no theoretical or practical chance. Yet the
range is broad enough, so much so that putting all this together presents
quite a problem.”
Mr. Filenko further assumes that “Pustovoitenko’s ascent
is possible, unless someone trips him from among the Presidential team.
From my standpoint (i.e., that of Reforms & Order which I represent)
and the bloc of my party and Rukh, I can say that we do not intend to turn
electing the Premier into a saga. We believe that the President must implement
his victory and his right with regard to a certain candidate. In other
words, if he consider that Pustovoitenko is the man, we won’t start fighting
windmills. We will not assume political responsibility for the President
or his Premier, but nor shall we throw monkey wrenches in the works. Mr.
Kuchma has a right, which he is free to exercise. Likewise, we are not
inclined to leave this country immediately without a Cabinet and Premier.”
In other words, there is a possibility that Parliament
will adopt the Premier without forming the cherished majority, either Left
or Right, but proceeding from the simple assumption that a country cannot
function normally without a government. If this be the case, the vote will
be according to the principle of lesser evil.
But is this a good thing?







