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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

WHO KNIFED BONDAR IN THE BACK? Or why the authorities no longer need the SPF

13 November, 2012 - 00:00
Photo by Volodymyr RASNER,The Day: OLEKSANDR BONDAR (CENTER) BEFORE THE AXE FELL

Last Wednesday Parliament refused to confirm Oleksandr Bondar as head of the State Property Fund, blocked by a coalition spearheaded by the Communists and Hromada who demanded a voice vote on confirmation. Now the body in charge of privatization is headless and the whole policy in limbo. The question now is why, and here there are versions.

First, the Communists oppose privatization. Their spokesmen stated that they had nothing against Bondar “as a person” but voted on “purely ideological grounds.” In other words, they believe SPF should be managing state property, not selling it. However, their ideology has not kept them from going into business for themselves, and even Communist Deputies are not known for letting ideology stand in the way of their personal interests. And President Kuchma’s announced decision to privatize the outrageously profitable liquor industry means that those in office, Communists included, can anticipate quite a tasty tidbit from the privatization pie, 168 distilleries to be exact, which means enough to pass around.

Hromada, that inveterate opponent of the President headed by his former Prime Minister, seemed upset with Bondar’s commitment to carry out privatization guided “only by the laws of Ukraine.” Pavlo Lazarenko even called this statement the decisive factor in determining his faction’s attitude. And this raises an interesting question: What would they like to have privatization guided by, if not the law?

 

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