"I considered, and consider early elections during a world financial crisis to be a crime against the state. And I, by all possible means - legal, absolutely open and political, will not permit these elections to take place, because this is practically a war of everyone against everyone else. There will be no time for political forces to defend the country from political crisis, but there will be only a fight for every percentage point during the parliamentary elections," PM Tymoshenko said today.
And deputy head of the Central Electoral Commission, Andriy Mahera claimed that it would be impossible to hold early parliamentary elections before 21st December. The president had moved the nominated date for elections forward by one week to the 14th, but according to Mahera: "52 days remain until the 14th, but the time [required] for the election process for extraordinary elections should be from 54 to 60 days."
The president has nailed his colours to the mast. Today he told the BBC that he expects a new coalition and government to be formed by January 1st 2009. Recent political history in Ukraine, drawn out, tortuous negotiations in forming parliamentary coalitions, their instability, and recent opinion polls on how any future parliament would stack up, all suggest he is out of touch with reality.
If elections are postponed again until after the Christmas recess, calls for combined early parliamentary and presidential elections will grow ever louder..
Early presidential elections is the only way to put an end to the destructive power struggle between the Office of the President and the Parliament. Elections are not cheap costing 100's of millions of dollars. Money that could be better spent else where. If Ukraine must hold another round of ballots then the president should be next cab off the rank.
ReplyDeleteas long as Yushchenko remains on office Ukraine will continue to suffer instability and economic decline.
Yes, only early presidential election may stabilize the situation in Ukraine. Otherwise the political turmoil will not finish until 2010.
ReplyDeleteEarly presidential elections will not do a thing - nada, nothing - unless the system is changed in Parliament. Due to the party list system, right now Parliament represents only about 50 people - the oligarchs of Ukraine.
ReplyDeleteI'll put it to you this way - whom do you think that Yanukovych's son, the billiards expert and a member of Parliament, represents? The answer is easy. He DOES NOT represent the people. He represents OLIGARCHS.
Get rid of the party list system - make each individual candidate accountable to the people in his/her district.
Second, as in other countries, put a limit on campaign contributions. This would eliminate oligarchs buying their way onto the party list for up to $20 million.
Why would they pay that much to be on the party list? Because they get to use government to rob the country blind and put money into their own pockets.
Let the presidential elections take place as scheduled.
Instead, implement reform where it's needed.