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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

IS THE SPEAKER KNIFING THE CABINET IN THE BACK? Chances of Cabinet retirement grow

13 November, 2012 - 00:00
Photo by Valery Myloserdov,The Day: The Communists will decide if they are ready to bring down the government

A spirit of defiance has set in among Ukrainian legislators. A closer look, however, reveals a certain logic.

They voted down the reasonable proposal to return to Oleksandr Bondar’s candidacy. The State Property Fund at this privatization stage can remain in suspense, but the Communists’ stubborn approach is aimed at precisely such indefinite IMF status, making one wonder what this is all about. Vasyl Kononov of the Greens believes that things should not be overly dramatized:

“The Communists are acting according to an old principle: sprinkle some salt on a jellyfish and it will start twitching. It is, however, quite clear that keeping Bondar in ‘suspense’ allows the government to manipulate him at will, while the Verkhovna Rada’s support would enable him to take an independent professional stand.”

Still, the question remains whether the Communists really fail to see that they are handing the President a short leash on which to keep one of the key figures in the economic domain. After Parliament canceled the special auction scheduled for September 22 (and which was a thorn in the side of many) and suspending compensation certificates in the privatization of large entities, it may be assumed that something will be done about the SPF head.

Another “demarche” was made when the Cabinet asked to put off the date of submitting the draft budget program to October 15, since “the financial market situation makes it imperative that corrections be introduced in the GDP macroeconomic indices, inflation level, and budget deficit,” also because the IMF’s decision to grant the EFF loan deserves separate notice. The Solons blocked Speaker Tkachenko’s draft resolution, reminding him of the Constitution, respect for Parliament, and admonishing him not to venture any further decisions “on behalf” of the rest of the legislature.

The overall impression is that the harder the Speaker tries to push through issues of vital importance for the executive, the more often Parliament reminds him, obviously enjoying it, that the President’s permanent representative is a different person, and that Mr. Tkachenko’s popular appellation PR-2 is just a lobby nickname.

Serhiy Teriokhin ran the parallel even farther: “The government now has a very special political bandage under the name of Tkachenko. He fell in love with Valery Pustovoitenko after the Premier forgave the Land and People Association’s debts. Naturally, Mr. Tkachenko would hate to see someone else in the Premier’s seat for fear that the debts would surface again. Everyone in the audience was prepared to consider problems relating to the financial crisis and social issues. We were all ready, except Mr. Tkachenko.”

Well, this is a different subject: the Cabinet’s report on social spending. Somehow, it was left off the agenda. During a conciliation meeting last Monday it was proposed to prepare the issue for deliberation on Wednesday. It is not to be found on the agenda now. Reasons are believed to be different. Oleksandr Yemets (NDP) considers that “the government’s opponents saw that toppling the Cabinet won’t be easy now, because it has enough argumentation in its favor, including measures preventing the crisis from reaching full scope.” He also believes that the government should have demanded its report in the first place, raising the matter of confidence, “thus securing itself normal working conditions until the end of the sessions, as provided by the Constitution.” However, “unlike European governments which often practice this at a time of crisis, we have not reached this level of the political game and intrigue.” And further on: “We act like provincials. Wham, bam, everyone agrees. But this only serves to enhance the government’s enemy position, allowing them time get ready.”

Oleksandr Turchynov (Hromada) admits that such preparations are underway: “Over 230 signatures have been collected, but the faction leaders propose to cancel the narrower issue even now. Instead, the entire socioeconomic situation should be reviewed. The end of the month looks like the most likely time.”

Incidentally, bets are being made in the lobby about the Cabinet lasting no longer than September 29, the suggested date of the report, so some of the pro-Cabinet people address expletives to the Speaker, believing that the government would now have a good chance to live through the deliberations, but that the Speaker’s ardor played in the opposition’s hand.

 

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