Copyright © 2021 Euromaidanpress.com

The work of Euromaidan Press is supported by the International Renaissance Foundation

When referencing our materials, please include an active hyperlink to the Euromaidan Press material and a maximum 500-character extract of the story. To reprint anything longer, written permission must be acquired from [email protected].

Privacy and Cookie Policies.

The new Ukrainian government: party trustees or ‘reformers on a financial pillow’? 

Article by: Anastasia Moskvychova
Translated by: Mariya Shcherbinina
Kyiv – Initiative group First Professional Government for Reform proposes to say no to the quota principle and create a new government from representatives of the expert community. Civil unions which are included in it have proposed over a hundred candidates, and are currently discussing the team list which they plan to propose to the Verkhovna Rada. At the same time, some political experts consider the formation of a government which would consist of people uninvolved in politics impossible. 

To replace the National Salvation Government, a Government for Reform should be set up, think the representatives of the eponymous initiative group which includes about thirty various professional unions. They intend to form a list of the new government including experts and propose it to the newly-elected Parliament. According to co-founder of Civil Platform New Country Valery Pekar, who is part of the aforementioned union, the candidates will have to meet strict demands: besides the educational level and experience, there is also the matter of the ‘financial pillow,’ which is their own capital which would prevent them from abusing their position. The initiative group has been working since February of the current year, part of the projects it had developed are already being executed by the current government, Pekar says.

“The reform strategy includes about fifty concrete reforms, many of which are already embodied in bills, many of the reforms are more than bills, for example the reform of state purchases is already being more or less implemented as a piloting project, which is evidence by the appropriate memorandum with the government and the Verkhovna Rada,” he notes. “We work with such famous reform organizations as the Reanimation Reform Package, for example.”

Some of the people who joined the initiative now work as advisors, however to execute the reform project, this is insufficient, says President of the Ukrainian Club of Harvard Alumni Danyil Pasko.

“Forty people now work in various government structures: the finance director of Naftogaz-Ukrayiny member of the National Council for Reform, advisors to the Ukrainian Prime Minister, advisors in the President’s Administration, a number of Ministries, heads of departments,” he notes.

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said earlier that there would be no quotas in the new Parliament: neither during the formation of the coalition not during the formation of government. Meanwhile People’s Front party candidate who currently, according to CEC calculations, is leading in the multi-mandate district, Viktoriya Siumar told Radio Liberty that the formation of a new government should be undertaken by the leader of this political party and current Prime Minister Arseniy Yatseniuk.

Taran: it is impossible to form the government out of “outsiders”

It is impossible to say no to the quota principle of government formation at the moment, as the oligarchs who finance the parties will not allow this to happen, thinks political expert Serhiy Taran.

“Viewing ‘their’ parties as investment projects, they will demand the return of the money the invested through lobbying appropriate bills which would allow the oligarchs to receive surplus revenues,” says the expert. “It is first and foremost necessary to enforce the principles of functioning of political forces. If this is not done, there may be nice talk of the fact that we will no longer have a quota principle, however, all these people who will be found elsewhere will still to some degree ‘pledge their allegiance’ to such and such political parties, and through those, to oligarch circles.”

However, he considers it possible to create an informal “anti-oligarch opposition” in the new Parliament which would include representatives from various parties.

Translated by: Mariya Shcherbinina
You could close this page. Or you could join our community and help us produce more materials like this.  We keep our reporting open and accessible to everyone because we believe in the power of free information. This is why our small, cost-effective team depends on the support of readers like you to bring deliver timely news, quality analysis, and on-the-ground reports about Russia's war against Ukraine and Ukraine's struggle to build a democratic society. A little bit goes a long way: for as little as the cost of one cup of coffee a month, you can help build bridges between Ukraine and the rest of the world, plus become a co-creator and vote for topics we should cover next. Become a patron or see other ways to support. Become a Patron!
Total
0
Shares
Related Posts