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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

Oleksandra Kuzhel: “The Law has to be paid for. I lobbied for free.”

13 November, 2012 - 00:00

Having entered The Day conference hall our guest, freshly-appointed head of the State Committee for Business Development, sang. And (as a clear cut eccentric) began talking only after she had caught the admiring glances of those people. Certainly, the conversation was not only about the author’s song.

The Day: Beginning when Leonid Kuchma was Premier, those working with him and holding economic posts have been well known. Figuratively speaking, four years passed before miners marched out to Kyiv. Lack of reforms explains why entrepreneurs are not government supporters.

OK: I will explain. This is also partially my fault as a Verkhovna Rada Deputy. The worst thing is the absence of a single team. I also suffered excessively from this when I was in Parliament. Only a masochist can derive enjoyment from leadership, while normal people enjoy playing on a team. I believe that under the ongoing restructuring the entire government has to solve one problem. But it’s quite different, our committee deals with business, the tax administration strives to replenish the budget, the State Property Fund works for privatization. Actually there is no common agenda for all. Any President needs a single team, and the appointment of Volodymyr Lanovy as SPFU Head showed that selfish people, who love only themselves and play their own game, cannot be put on the team.

The Day: What team will you play for now?

OK: I always play with my team. I came with it to the committee. I played for the team (Social Market Choice faction) in Parliament. I would have never become what I am if I had not been on a team. It is very nice that today there are people in the committee which match all my team’s criteria. I appreciate intellect and honesty.

The Day: You have experience working in Parliament. What is your attitude toward lobbying?

OK: I am and will remain an adherent of the law on lobbying, that is, that each law should has its own author. I mean that not the People’s Deputy, who supports a law, should be paid but those, who prepare it and its explanatory materials. As for me, I lobbied the question on the Syvash zone, the law on accounting, the law on auditing, amendments to the law on VAT. Unfortunately, I did it free of charge. It is a paradox, we want to adopt good laws but we do not pay the people who draft them. Experts do not work free of charge, and, in general, only the cheese in a mousetrap can be free of charge. Just imagine, only some ten people are dealing with 150 laws in the Verkhovna Rada Commission for Economic Policy. Can these laws be good? Never.

The Day: During your work for the mentioned commission you closely cooperated with Natalya Vitrenko. What do you think of her, as of a person, Deputy, and economist?

OK: I like her, and we are close friends. I always accept people just like they are, since attempts to change people is the most thankless of activities. I may say that she is reliable. When we discussed economic laws she, as an expert, listened and worked but never asked for trouble. At the time when I had to present the law on auditing and I had an operation in the hospital, she came forward and reported the law in my place. Then she was literally cut to pieces by her party comrades for supposedly selling out to the capitalist Kuzhel. Actually she stood up for my point of view: the state should have a law on auditing. I appreciate those who have their own viewpoint but share the ideas of others. The gray mass frightens me.

The Day: Would you reach an understanding with Slava Stetsko?

OK: I have always managed to find common language with her. In principal, although I am not a feminist, I have never had problems with women members. I like very much Kateryna Vashchuk, Lilechka Hryhorovych and I am on friendly terms with communist Samoilyk.

The Day: Mrs. Kuzhel, as you know Marx was just an economist, as well as Adam Smith, while you are a merited economist. What do you feel like bearing this title under current economic conditions?

OK: It is not a heavy burden since women got used to wearing jewelry to make themselves beautiful. This title does not trouble me either. It is a reward of special importance for me. It was not made in advance, since I worked very hard then, though I can not say that the state appreciates it now. As for me, I would like to establish a reward for those, who do their utmost for entrepreneurs.

The Day: What title would you award to the President: merited economist, people’s economist, or something else?

OK: First of all he is the President to me. I do not belong to those, who do not respect authority. I can criticize, while he said that I was picking on him. He bears responsibility for the present situation (as well as for his activity in Parliament) but then one has to admit that he is very human. I cannot recall him having refused to accept me. While, believe me, I never told him sweet words, but I never had any trouble. And I don’t even today, being appointed the Head of the State Committee. However, I swear, when he said his farewell the future presidential election was not mentioned at all. The only thing he said was: “Try to win back entrepreneurs’ respect for the State”.

The Day: And still, what title?

OK: I have already said, the most human. My son was awarded a medal in his school as Mr. Fairness. As for Mr. Kuchma, I would give him a medal of Mister Humanness.

The Day: Mrs. Kuzhel, during election campaign you were the second in a list of some strange Party of Defenders of the Fatherland, although you could have been on the Liberal Party list. Some people say that you were denied admittance by the Liberal Party, since you were supposed to be from Marchuk’s circle.

OK: I could not be denied admittance because I did not propose myself. You know that I left the Liberal Party together with my whole team. I wanted to be in a party, not in Volodymyr Shcherban’s personal firm. Thus there was no conversation about the Liberal Party list. I do not share its ideology. Maybe some people did call us members of Marchuk’s circle. I am not afraid of this.

As for the Defenders of the Fatherland, I knew that this party has no money. And I realized what I was doing. I will continue to support them. This is a state level problem. One famous person said: “When the state does not feed its own army, it will have to feed an alien one”.

The Day: You closely dealt with the murder of Yevhen Shcherban. Don’t you link this murder with that of Vadym Hetman, at least in terms of their motives?

OK: No. At present I am also on friendly terms with Shcherban’s family, his children. I will respect the memory of those whom I liked, Yevhen and Nadiya. You know, their third son is studying in America, and the children cannot meet each other. I applied to the embassy and to Congress. Volodymyr Horbulin has also tried to help but so far in vain. How can you call a country democracy where such things are possible? The President also helped us and stopped the destruction of Shcherban’s firms.

The Day: The President lost some of his cadres, some of them even in opposition to him. The loss of whom is the most critical and could this loss may be related to his unpredictable character, which today is often mentioned?

OK: He has no such trait. He is very true to his principles. This is also my weak point, and I suffer from it too much. I always tell myself: “don’t trust, you can’t trust”. But how can you live without trust? I think that Dmytro Tabachnyk is a great loss. He was one of the most devoted people in this team. He played very professionally and shouldered responsibility for all negative aspects, covering the President. I think the Lanovy appointment was wrong. I like how Volodymyr Yatsuba plays on the team. I also agree with the appointment of Bielov. However, I think that the case of Zaporizhzhia oblast administration was dragged out for too long. As for Pokhvalsky, it high time to remove him from his post and replace with someone young and promising. Even on the level of plant directors any friendship obligations have to be rejected. A team member and a friend most often is not the same thing. To my mind removal of Halchynsky and Razumkov and their subsequent return was also wrong. One should fight for the team but if you remove someone, don’t bring him back. For such people hold a grudge and think that they might be removed again.

Photo by Volodymyr Rasner, The Day

 

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