On Thursday, Communist Adam Martyniuk was elected First Deputy Speaker and United Social Democrat Viktor Medvedchuk Deputy Speaker. The next day started in the Ukrainian Parliament with Deputies' comments on this election. Rukh called it a "final confirmation of the Left's majority' and proclaimed itself a parliamentary minority in opposition.
The parliament approved a list of 24 (up from 22) committee chairmen divided among the fractions. CPU representatives will head the committees of legal reform, state construction, foreign affairs, national security, and pensions. NDP will be in charge of the committees on public health, science and education, industrial policy, the Industrial Economic Complex, and construction issues. Hromada got the committees on youth policy, the budget, combating organized crime, and rules. Rukh will lead the committees on culture, finance, and human rights. Left Center representatives have the committees on agricultural policy and freedom of expression. The Greens get the committee on environmental policy, and Social-Democrats (united) that on social policy and labor.
The Progressive Socialists who got no committee voted against the decision. They were supported by the Greens who wanted one more committee, the budget one.
The President asked Parliament to approve the amended 1998 budget before the parliamentary vacations start and to accept Mykhailo Potebenko's appointment as Prosecutor General.






