Volodymyr ZAYATS: Surrendering the Committees, the Majority Suffered a Defeat
When the parliamentary crisis reached its peak on the New Year’s Eve, Volodymyr Zayats of the Social Democratic Party of Ukraine, United (SDPU {O}) faction, was one of the most active figures in the majority. He agreed to preside over the ad hoc counting commission set up by the majority to vote on the appointment of Serhiy Tyhypko to head the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU), as well as the redistribution of parliamentary committees. The latter decision was soon canceled. The Day ’s correspondent asked Zayats to comment on the situation in the parliamentary majority and the position of his faction, as the third session has just begun.
The second session of the fourth Verkhovna Rada was in political turmoil, especially in the end. Could you assess the results?
I was more disappointed than satisfied by the last session. Both the Opposition and the Majority disappointed me. Ukraine has a lot of problems created by none other than the Ukrainian parliament, including troubles with the 2003 budget and FATF sanctions.
Members of your faction often scathingly criticized the way the parliamentary majority worked. Do you think parliament is resuming work with or without the majority?
In legal terms, the Majority still exists, the coalition government functions, and the agreement between the President, the Majority, and the Cabinet remains in force. We are going to see soon whether or not we now have a parliamentary majority. Some majority members are supporting a draft law governing the activities of both the Majority and the Opposition. Such a law will prove that the parliamentary majority still exists. If it does not pass, it would be indeed wrong to say it does.
Your faction’s leader Leonid Kravchuk said the United Social Democrats are prepared to waive responsibility for governmental actions. We would like to know in this connection more details about how the SDPU (O) faction positions itself in the majority.
I do not think our faction will waive responsibility for the coalition government’s actions. Naturally, today we consider ourselves full-fledged members of the parliamentary majority. But we would not like to figure in an amorphous, purely titular, organization.
Our Ukraine, by all accounts, thinks it emerged victorious in the parliamentary battles at the end of the last year. Can it happen that Viktor Yushchenko’s faction will take advantage of differences in the majority and initiate the formation of a majority of his own?
I would characterize the surrender of committees as defeat of the majority rather than victory of Our Ukraine. I do not think a new majority could be formed today based upon the Yushchenko bloc. It seems to me that the that bloc’s aggressiveness and attempts to win points with a view to the oncoming presidential campaign is bound to cement our majority and make it more effective.
What do you think is Verkhovna Rada’s No. 1 task during the new session?
The main problem to be solved is bringing the law on minimum wages (UAH 185 starting January 1, going to UAH 235 on July 1) into line with the previously adopted state budget for 2003. This requires partial revision, on the order of about UAH 3 billion in expenditures. Unfortunately, the government and the budget committee have not yet come to terms on this matter, which may create a serious problem for all the branches of government. The budget itself can hardly be called an ideal document. It calls into question whether many social programs might be discontinued. The deputies refused to support our faction’s attempt to include in the budget a thirty to forty percent salary increase for teachers and doctors. A very important task that requires immediate action is removing Ukraine from the FATF black list. Verkhovna Rada is also to consider a number of Constitutional amendments and laws dealing with the opposition and parliamentary majority, the President, and presidential elections. I am afraid debating on all those bills may highly politicize the atmosphere in parliament, which will, in turn, push back deliberations on the Tax Code, the Ukrainian producers’ most sought- after document. To avert this situation, I think we must first handle the economy-related laws.
Do you think the third session will be able to amend the Constitution in line with the president’s political reform program?
In a nutshell, I don’t think so. In spite of public rhetoric about the necessity of reform, many factions are clearly reluctant to address it. Some individuals hope to become President of Ukraine, the person who wields the powers enshrined in the current Constitution. Still, the SDPU (O) faction will do its utmost to carry out the political reform because the latter logically conforms to our program.
Does the SDPU (O) faction have concrete proposals for solving the problem of the majority coordinator? Is former president Leonid Kravchuk a likely candidate?
We believe that Mr. Kravchuk has already quite successfully served in this position. Therefore, we must give other political forces a chance to govern.
Some media reports claim that your faction might co-opt the former majority coordinator Oleksandr Karpov. To what extent is this true?
It’s news to me. But if this happened, I wouldn’t object.
Could you comment on why Oleksandr Volkov has pulled out of your faction? Is he perhaps just “the first swallow” to fly away?
He joined and left our faction somewhat inconspicuously. I cannot recall any strong stand Mr. Volkov took as SDPU (O) faction member. It was clear to all from the very outset that Volkov had quite serious plans of his own to restructure the faction. We wish him success in the future. As for “the first swallow,” I don’t think so. I know all members very well. None of the deputies is going to defect.
