Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko yesterday gained the right
to dissolve parliament and call new elections after he let a
midnight deadline to form a government pass without approving the
majority coalition's nomination for prime minister.
But members of the parliamentary majority coalition turned up
pressure on the president not to take such a step, warning that it
could lead to civil unrest in the deeply divided nation. They
called a special parliamentary session for later Tuesday to discuss
the situation, and invited Yushchenko to attend.
The coalition nominated Viktor Yanukovych Yushchenko's opponent
in the 2004 "Orange Revolution" to be prime minister, but
Yushchenko has not yet acted on the nomination, as required before
parliament can vote on forming a new government. The constitutional
deadline for forming the government was midnight Monday.
"Parliament is ready to appoint the prime minister and form the
government, but unfortunately we haven't received the nomination
for prime minister," said lawmaker Raisa Bohatyryova, a member of
Yanukovych's party. "Attempts to form the government are
blocked."
Ukrainian politics have been deadlocked since March's
parliamentary elections, when Yanukovych's pro-Russian Party of
Regions won the most seats, but fell short of a majority. The
Western-leaning party of Yushchenko and two other parties announced
a coalition in June, but one partner, the Socialist Party, defected
and joined forces with the Party of Regions and the Communists.
Socialist Party leader Oleksandr Moroz was then elected
parliament speaker.
Moroz late Monday warned Yushchenko against calling new
elections.
"The president has a legal and civilized option forward to
parliament its nomination for prime minister," he said. "Dissolving
parliament could lead to civil conflict and nothing would justify
such a tragedy, for which someone would have to answer."
Yushchenko has appeared reluctant to take such a drastic step as
dissolving parliament. Opinion polls indicate the majority of
Ukrainians oppose new elections, and that if a new vote was held,
Yushchenko's party could fare even worse than its third-place
finish in March.
The coalition sent Yanukovych's nomination to Yushchenko on July
18. The constitution apparently allows the president 15 days to
consider such a nomination before forwarding it.
That would give Yushchenko until August 2 to decide; his office
has said the president will be guided by this time frame,
suggesting that no resolution is imminent.
(China Daily July 26, 2006)
