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Where there is no law, but every man does what is right in his own eyes, there is the least of real liberty
Henry M. Robert

ONE YEAR IN OFFICE, FIVE TO GO

13 July, 1999 - 00:00

Speaker post moves smoothly into presidential campaign

By Tetiana KOROBOVA, The Day

July 7 was, by all accounts, an unusual day for Parliament: exactly a year
ago, Oleksandr Tkachenko was elected Verkhovna Rada Speaker, ending a backbreaking,
multi-component and multi-episode two month intrigue inspired by the Presidential
Administration. This so-called Speakeriad basically came down to preventing
the Speaker's chair from turning into a springboard to the presidency.

Answering The Day's question if he is satisfied with one year
with the post, Mr. Tkachenko said, "I think Parliament has done a good
job." He also replied to the additional question of why the President continues
to threaten Parliament and what is the Speaker's attitude to it, "I can't
agree that Parliament always stands in the President's way. His own apparatus
might stand in his way, or he could be dissatisfied with the way his Cabinet
works. As to Parliament, only we are authorized to assess its work. The
President can, of course, express his opinion. He has that right. But I
cannot accept his constant references to the harmfulness and low quality
of Parliament's work."

Mr. Tkachenko also gave the President some advice on what he should
do instead of criticizing Parliament. Translated from the diplomatic: take
a good look at yourself.

Mr. Tkachenko also cherishes an idea of "streamlining" law enforcement
agencies, still under a barrage of complaints from the provinces about
their direct involvement in organizing the election campaign in favor of
Leonid Kuchma. The Speaker said that any candidate, who arrives in a region,
should be accompanied by a deputy minister of internal affairs and a deputy
Security Service chief as provided for by law. Supervision of this should
be assigned to the Prosecutor-General's Office.

As to legislative work as such, Parliament has so far successfully torpedoed
almost all the President's decrees. "The point is most bills based on presidential
decrees concern issues regulated by current legislation. So I can't understand
why we need a different law or decree." This is how Mr. Tkachenko explained
the situation to the press.

INCIDENTALLY

The Day's correspondent asked a representatives from the Right
and the Left to assess the parliamentary head on the first anniversary
of his assuming the post.

Heorhy KRIUCHKOV, the Communist Party of Ukraine:

"It seems to me Mr. Tkachenko has done his duties well in this difficult
year. Extremely difficult legislative decisions have been made, such as
the treaty with Russia, the Black Sea Fleet Agreement, and the Constitution
of the Crimea. He is quite up to the job. He has managed to keep Verkhovna
Rada moving forward, and he is able to do more than this. He would have
been an ideal prime minister in a parliamentary republic, without a president.
But when there is the post of a president invested with omnipotent powers,
Mr. Tkachenko could, of course, handle this also and do it much better
and skillfully than the present incumbent."

Ivan DRACH, Rukh:

"I am happy that when Verkhovna Rada was electing this outstanding politician
as Speaker I was far away in Australia and did not take part. I am proud
of it. Now it has become clear that one absolutely always has to be №.1
in this bedlam called Ukraine, so he has reached the home stretch of the
presidential race and messed everything up."

 

Speaker post moves smoothly into presidential campaign
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