Verkhovna Rada ousts Vice-Chair Medvedchuk (12/16/01)

Verkhovna Rada ousts Vice-Chair Medvedchuk

by Roman Woronowycz
Kyiv Press Bureau

KYIV - Five factions of the national democratic center-right in Ukraine's Parliament successfully joined with the Communist faction on December 13 to oust First Vice-Chairman Viktor Medvedchuk from his post.

The unexpected vote came after the right-center factions, including Reforms-Congress, Batkivschyna, Ukrainian National Rukh, National Rukh of Ukraine and Yednist, had garnered the required 150 signatures from among the lawmakers required to call for a vote.

The first vice-chairman, who is the leader of the powerful Social Democratic Party (United) and one of Ukraine's richest businessmen, was removed by a vote of 234-50. Members of the five parliamentary factions that are thought to be controlled by business clans - Labor Ukraine, Regions of Ukraine, the Democratic Union, the National Democratic faction and the Greens faction - either opposed the proposal or did not take part in the voting.

Oleksander Turchynov, leader of the Batkivschyna faction in the Verkhovna Rada, said prior to the vote that Mr. Medvedchuk had abused the powers of his office.

"He subjectively plans the daily agenda and does not allow for needed government draft laws to be included," explained Mr. Turchynov, according to Interfax-Ukraine.

Mr. Medvedchuk had become increasingly more powerful and more visible in the two months since Verkhovna Rada Chairman Ivan Pliusch was hospitalized for high blood pressure and a heart ailment.

Few lawmakers had indicated that such a vote could occur on the day the budget was to take priority until National Deputy Volodymyr Bondarenko of the Reforms-Congress faction told the packed session hall that the five factions would block a vote on the budget unless the matter of Mr. Medvedchuk was placed on the day's agenda. After a 30-minute break, Rada Chairman Pliusch announced the vote would take place after the budget bill was considered.

Mr. Medvedchuk appeared to take the developments in stride. He waived his right to address the lawmakers prior to the vote, stating that, "it is not necessary that I defend myself before anybody about what and how," and told Mr. Pliusch to go forward with the vote.

After the vote he explained that he was not a slave to the vice-chairman's chair.

While neither the left nor the right was talking after the vote, Leonid Kravchuk, a colleague of Mr. Medvedchuk in the Social Democratic Party (United), said the vote was revenge.

For the right, it was revenge for the vice-chairman's involvement in the no-confidence vote against Prime Minister Yuschenko earlier this year, as well as a recent effort to have the status of the Russian language raised, which many said was Mr. Medvedchuk's doing.

For the left it was revenge for Mr. Medvedchuk's involvement in the Verkhovna Rada putsch that brought down Parliament Chairman Oleksander Tkachenko in early 2000.

"They wanted revenge - they got it," said Mr. Kravchuk. "There was no reason for debate or for Mr. Medvedchuk to defend himself. The decisions had been made."

| Home Page |