“The Highest” relationship

The chances of Natalie Jaresko, Minister of Finance, to occupy the chair of the prime minister have decreased significantly over the past three days... The rumors of that this strong-willed lady would send the current Prime Minister Arsenii Yatseniuk to rest soon have been actively promoted from behind the walls of the Presidential Administration late last week. Particular media affiliated to Borys Lozhkin, current head of the Administration, have cited the unnamed source on Bankova St.: “The source asserts that the resignation of the head of government has long been brewing... People no longer express any support to Yatseniuk and his party People’s Front, thus as a logical step for Poroshenko would be to put the blame for the failure of economic policy on the prime minister. Natalie Jaresko, Minister of Finance, is considered to be a likely contender for the post, as she has performed her duties on her current job effectively (!).”

However, according to MPs, questioned by The Day, including those from the leadership of the pro-presidential faction, were certain, albeit in a bit conflicting way (see the comments below): any replacement for the head of government is not on the agenda. Sure. On the agenda is the integrity of the coalition. After the “detainment of the UKROP party leader,” two members of the coalition have immediately declared their disagreement with the policy of the authorities – the Self Reliance and the Fatherland. Also, it became known that Yulia Tymoshenko had long been blackmailing the Poroshenko Bloc that her faction will not vote for the Presidential Reform Package that allegedly opens the path to a visa-free regime for Ukraine, unless they vote in return for the Law on the reduction of rent for natural gas mining...

 And Yatseniuk himself is not an easy political opponent. One would have problems to depose him. Yatseniuk has long been in the politics and learned how to play ahead of the curve... Knowing that the chair underneath him becomes too hot, he himself initiated the talk on reformatting the government at a meeting of the factions’ leadership at the Presidential Administration on Monday. Citing its source, Ukrainska Pravda writes that Yatseniuk mentioned the expiration of the government immunity on December 12, after which Verkhovna Rada would have to decide on how to proceed. “He said that changing some ministers would be right, it would be a European way. But replacing the entire government would require another format for the coalition format, because in this case the People’s Front faction would not partake in the majority. Obviously, by the word ‘government’ he meant himself. It’s blackmail,” continues the source of Ukrainska Pravda. For his part, the president made it clear on the meeting that he did not need early parliamentary elections, saying: “No one in this room wants early elections, right? Then start doing your job!”

Photo by Ruslan KANIUKA, The Day

On the other hand, Finance Minister herself does not justify the high expectations of her patrons. Jaresko’s entrance to the new position of the government head should have been the tax reform, the implementation of should have drawn the applause of the IMF and secured of the next tranche. However, Jaresko was let down by her “contractors.”

As Nina Yuzhanina, Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Tax and Customs Policy, told in an interview to The Day, “world’s leading experts” were attracted by the Finance Ministry to assist with the reform development. However, as Yuzhanina has already had her own version of the tax reform registered already, the Ministry of Finance has nothing to show except the concept presented over a month ago on the Council on Reforms. And that happens because those “leading specialists” – as The Day managed to find out, they are the analysts of the Price Waterhouse Coopers Ukrainian office (this particular company having received more than half a million dollars from an “American donor”) – did not cope with the task. “They gave her some drafts, but they all were turned down,” says The Day’s source. “Currently we are waiting for more drafts.”

However, Volodymyr Lanovy, ex-Minister of Economy, is convinced that replacing Jaresko in the Cabinet would not change anything. The expert does not believe that in the position of the Finance Minister, or even as the Prime Minister, Jaresko will be able to offer any sensible program of economic breakthrough – and the same is the case with the “immovable” Yatseniuk. It seems that common “lunches” at Victor Pinchuk’s impact the reformist passion negatively.

COMMENTARIES

Anatolii MATVIIENKO, deputy chairman of the Petro Poroshenko Bloc faction:

“Today, Prime Minister Yatseniuk says that he has not enough deputy prime ministers; that he needs a Deputy Prime Minister on the issues of the ATO, Deputy Prime Minister for the European Integration, on some or other issues. I consider this to be a superficial response to the problem; we should perhaps look for more professional people in several areas and strengthen the executive branch of power. But this requires a coalition we do not have. As a result, no one can introduce a radical, not cosmetic change to the government. We need to make it clear in the parliament, because if there is no majority, any complaints to anyone on the lack of reforms are meaningless. If there is no parliamentary majority and no prospect of its existence, one must decide differently. There is no common understanding today that the national interest should come as the first priority, and all the others follow. We have too much populism in any issue we try to tackle.”

Ihor KONONENKO, first deputy head of the Petro Poroshenko Bloc faction:

“The ‘People’s Front’ insists that the law package in the EU should be voted for before the rent; the Fatherland demands the exact opposite. Now the committees have started working, and the laws will be voted as they are ready. Most likely the visa-free package will be regarded on Thursday, as there are six laws, and many amendments to them need to be taken into account. By December 11 no one can raise the issue of the government resignation in the parliament, because of the immunity. And if the issue is raised on some date after December 11, then we will listen to the prime minister’s report and then work out a decision. As of today, this issue is not on the agenda, and it has not been discussed at today’s meeting of the factions’ leadership; the same for the appointment of the individual members of the government.”