With the new configuration in parliament, the government has fallen into long-term dependence on numerous influence groups
New Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman will face a difficult time within parliament under a shaky coalition. Photo: Bohdan Bortakov / Facebook
The appointment of Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman and his Cabinet formally resolved the long-running government crisis. However, the coalition formed under the new Cabinet, consisting of the Petro Poroshenko Bloc (PPB) and the People's Front (PF), remains unstable and requires assistance from other factions and parliamentary groups. Thus, the government has become dependent on influence groups within and outside parliament.
"Sandwich" for Yatsenyuk and Groysman
Until the very moment of the vote, the number of votes cast in the session hall for the new head of government remained a mystery. However, President Petro Poroshenko's presence in the Rada guaranteed a successful vote (otherwise, the head of state would hardly have appeared in parliament).
Acting Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk spoke first: "I would like to thank my opponents and enemies for making me stronger. I want to note that together we have accomplished much for our country and our people, but we must move forward. I ask that you accept my resignation..." After finishing his speech, Yatsenyuk left the session hall to applause from his faction.
President Poroshenko spoke next, first recalling that April 14 marks the second anniversary of the start of the anti-terrorist operation in Donbas. "The country has been saved. The worst of the economy, I firmly hope, is also behind us. New tasks have emerged that must be implemented by the new government, which, I hope, will be elected by you today within the walls of the Ukrainian parliament. These tasks are staggering in their scope, and perhaps that's why there was no queue for the post of Prime Minister of Ukraine," Poroshenko said. He gave an excellent description of Groysman: a politician of a new generation, the future youngest prime minister in the country's recent history, one of the best mayors of regional centers "with a record level of public support," a top manager of reforms in Yatsenyuk's first government...
Groysman had to speak amidst the cries of protesters over his nomination. "You can scream, you can rant, you can do whatever you want, but that's no reason to scream when the country demands very clear and balanced decisions." A few seconds later, he simply exploded: "So I want to say: 'Shame on all those who, over the past 24 years, have failed to give people the opportunity to live like human beings! And what you're babbling about here is shameful!... I'll show you what governing a country is!'"
Deputy Speaker Andriy Parubiy put draft resolution No. 4423, authored by BPP faction leader Yuriy Lutsenko and People's Front leader Maksym Burbak ( read more about him in the article " Maxim Burbak: How Chernivtsi Residents Sat on Donetsk's "Golden Toilet" ), to a vote, and the document received 257 votes in favor. Ukraine has a new prime minister.
However, the breakdown of votes showed that only 206 of the two majority factions—227 deputies—voted. The remaining votes came from the parliamentary groups "Vydrozhennya" (23 votes) and "Will of the People" (16 votes), as well as 11 independent deputies. There were also complaints about the content of the resolution itself, where Yatsenyuk, with his resignation, managed to repeal the February resolution declaring his performance unsatisfactory. "It turned out to be a kind of sandwich: in a single document, between provisions on the dismissal of one prime minister and the appointment of another, they tucked Yatsenyuk's demand for repeal," commented MP Serhiy Leshchenko (BPP).
Today, Andriy Parubiy received the most support in the session hall. Photo: Bogdan Bortakov / Facebook
By comparison, the Rada cast 284 votes for the new speaker, Andriy Parubiy. The new Cabinet of Ministers (including the unfilled position of Minister of Health) received the support of 239 deputies.
There were also some hiccups. It took the Rada three tries to approve Groysman's Cabinet's program of action, granting him immunity for a year. "Some coalition members simply left the chamber before the first votes, dispersing throughout the Rada. Everyone was called back, and the program was adopted," MP Kostyantyn Usov (BPP) told the publication. However, his faction colleague, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that several MPs refused to vote for the document because they hadn't had time to properly review it. "It appeared on the MPs' desks just before Groysman's presentation. Some wanted to study it in more detail, and even postpone the vote until Tuesday," the source explained.
The Missed Ministry
Groysman's Cabinet of Ministers had to be put to a vote without a single ministerial candidate because the president's team (whose quota includes this position) was unable to decide on a name. According to an informed source in the Petro Poroshenko Bloc, candidates for the portfolio included faction members Kostiantyn Ishcheykin (a medical professional) and Maria Ionova, Mykola Polischuk, who had already held this position in Yulia Tymoshenko's government, and Deputy Minister of Health Roman Vasilishin (former head physician of the Oleksandrivska Clinical Hospital in Kyiv). However, the source claims that none of these candidates received sufficient support within the Petro Poroshenko Bloc.
"Ishcheykin has the support of at most 30 deputies. Ionova said she's not ready. Polishchuk is said to have had few notable achievements during his previous tenure at the Ministry of Health. Vasilishin was reminded that during the Euromaidan protests, security forces had free access to the Oleksandrivska Hospital, where wounded activists were being taken. But who will replace them is unclear. And the main reason is that the Ministry of Health is a source of enormous tenders, which various interest groups are vying for, and it's difficult for them to reach an agreement," the source lamented, predicting a resolution to the personnel issue "no sooner than next week." When asked by the publication whether the faction might return to discussing deputy Oleksiy Goncharenko (who had previously been in the running) as a candidate, the source denied.
What the groups received
It is no coincidence that today's landmark votes were successful thanks to the parliamentary groups "Vidrodzhennya" and "Will of the People".
According to a source in parliamentary leadership, a key role was played by a trilateral agreement between the Presidential Administration, the People's Front, and Privat Group co-owner Ihor Kolomoisky. It was Kolomoisky who entered this triangle with the votes of his Vidrodzhennya party, which played a key role in the outcome, which was crucial for the president. In gratitude for their support, Kolomoisky and Vidrodzhennya, according to the source, demanded substantial bonuses from the government.
Firstly, leave the current management of the customs department in the State Fiscal Service unchanged.
Secondly, the removal of the Chairman of the Odessa Regional State Administration, Mikheil Saakashvili, and his replacement by People's Deputy Oleksandr Presman (Vidrodzhennya).
Thirdly, the retention of the current Odessa regional prosecutor, Nikolai Stoyanov, in his position.
Fourth, appoint Ihor Nasalik as Minister of Fuel and Energy (Kolomoisky's quota in the Petro Poroshenko Bloc faction). Other ministers aligned with the oligarch in the new government include Volodymyr Omelyan (Ministry of Infrastructure) and Arsen Avakov (Ministry of Internal Affairs).
Furthermore, Vidrodzhennia, for its part, negotiated positions for its members in the leadership of several parliamentary committees. "The single-member deputies have probably asked for subsidies for local budgets in their constituencies. And there's plenty to share: the total amount of subsidies approved is UAH 1,94 billion," claims a source in the Opposition Bloc faction, who requested anonymity.
However, both groups say their vote for Groysman was driven solely by state interests. "We weren't promised anything. It was simply impossible to push the political situation to the point of absurdity, thereby completely destroying the state. The government is essentially dysfunctional. Had the premiere dragged on any longer, we would have only exacerbated the general chaos. And we are against self-destruction," Vidrodzhennya co-chairman Viktor Bondar told the publication.
However, newly elected Speaker Parubiy has already stated the need to fill vacant positions in the leadership of parliamentary committees, as well as revise some of them to take into account the interests of the "opposition." He did not specify what the speaker meant by this. A member of parliament from Poroshenko's entourage allowed for the possibility of a new division of committees, taking into account the changed parliamentary balance. "However, this must be done carefully, so as not to introduce a new bone of contention into the session hall," he noted.
"The government has driven itself into dependence on the People's Will, Renaissance, and Opposition Bloc. Due to the coalition's critical size, it will have to negotiate with them for votes. And they will only be the ones writing the bills—preferences, tender wins, rents, coal and ore transportation tariffs, debt forgiveness for Ukrnafta and PrivatBank, and the like," believes MP Leshchenko (BPP).
On the topic: Andriy Parubiy. What the former Maidan commandant and head of the National Security and Defense Council concealed.
Volodymyr Groysman: Dark Spots in the Biography of the Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada
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