Registration of parliamentary candidates ends
Registration of candidate People’s Deputies ended on May 25 to vie for ten seats in the special elections to Verkhovna Rada.
Among those trying to get among the parliamentary Top Ten are such residents of the Ukrainian political Olympus as Naftohaz Ukrayiny former president Ihor Bakai (currently unemployed) and Economy Minister Serhiy Tyhypko (on leave due to participation in the campaign). As for his colleague, Vice Premier Yuliya Tymoshenko, the situation long remained unclear. Information available on May 24 indicated that she has not as yet bought a ticket for the Cabinet-Parliament charter flight. In fact, all she needed to be able to vie in Constituency No. 99 (Kirovohrad oblast) was a personal statement expressing her willingness to run in the elections. The Day ’s on site correspondent reports that all the other documents were prepared; Yuliya Tymoshenko’s campaign workers had collected the required 900 voters’ signatures (they wanted to add more to the list), submitted autobiographies, etc. But, since she did not make the required a statement on March 25, the princess will not turn into Cinderella and loses any chance to become a People’s Deputy and secure herself parliamentary immunity, should it ever become necessary.
Unofficial sources claim that Viktor Yushchenko had a long discussion with the energetic Vice Premier on his return from Brussels. Maybe one of its results was the non- presentation of the said statement to Constituency No. 99. If so, it is safe to assume that the Premier promised his secondin-command a carte blanche of sorts in the fuel-and-energy sector [FES]. The likelihood becomes even stronger, as experts point to the first signs of reallocation of authority there. The Day was told by Oleksiy Kucherenko, first deputy chairman of the parliamentary fuel-and-energy sector and nuclear safety committee, that “Yuri Yekhanurov is getting control over a number of issues relating to the FES (e.g., the Azerbaijan and several other energy projects). All things considered, the Fuel and Energy Minister will have greater authority under the Vice Premier’s watchful eye. In other words, every effort seems to be made “in that direction,” as President Kuchma put it at a meeting on the FES.
Assuming that Yuliya Tymoshenko did receive a blank check from the Premier and continues to supervise reform in that department, this reallocation of the pattern of authority is very likely to undergo substantial changes. Another likely possibility is that Yushchenko’s status become significantly more complicated on the one hand, and on the other Tymoshenko will have no alternative but find herself in a state of de facto deadlocked confrontation.
Serhiy Tyhypko stands a very good chance of winning in Constituency No. 36 (Pavlohrad, Dnipropetrovsk oblast). Everybody knows him well there: he headed Dnipropetrovsk’s Privatbank for five years and early in his Komsomol career was in command of the oblast Komsomol committee. It is safe to assume that he has started his campaign, visiting Pavlohrad and meeting with its mayor. In contrast with the Tymoshenko case, politicians are rather willing to comment on the possibility of this young reformer entering Parliament.
“It is quite possible that, apart from Tyhypko, a number of Cabinet members will shortly get seats in Parliament,” The Day was told by Kucherenko. “On the one hand, it is quieter there than in the Cabinet; on the other, the legislative status offers certain political opportunities. If they failed to fulfill their potential in government, they will have another chance to come out with new concepts, proposals, and so on, in Verkhovna Rada. I think that Tyhypko became aware of his potential as an independent operator, so he wants to give it a try after his long vice premiership and as Minister of the Economy. It is hard to say now whether he will make Premier, but he has certain traits — he is energetic, young, and determined — and he has an image; this will allow him to continue with his political career.”
People’s Deputy Borys Bezpaly says, “It is in Tyhypko’s character to work according to his own plans and schemes. At the same time, he does not obviously belong to a single political party. There is constant reshuffling in the political elite, people are taking different footholds in view of the 2002 and 2004 elections. Serhiy Tyhypko has garnered serious experience, first as a Komsomol (Communist Youth League) functionary, then in business and in the executive branch. He is becoming a potential contender for the Premier’s post, and eventually he might run for President.”
Indeed, Tyhypko can be seriously considered as a candidate for premiership, although there are at least two points to be made. First, Viktor Yushchenko’s position remains strong and replacement does not figure among the issues at the top of the agenda upstairs. Second, the list of candidates can hardly be described as brief, even without Tyhypko. As for the presidential elections, forecasting would seem premature at this stage, and not only because the current Chief Executive cautioned against speculation about his successor. It is still a long way to the year 2004 and a lot can change in Ukraine’s political life.
