Chief of the Presidential Administration Volodymyr Lytvyn believes the enactment of the law introducing a proportional system for parliamentary elections is premature. “The changeover to the proportional system should be done gradually,” Interfax-Ukraine quotes him. In his opinion, Ukrainian lawmakers should instead “significantly improve the law on the current mixed election system.” Given the elections to parliament are held under the proportional system, “we will get an unstructured Verkhovna Rada professionally inferior to the present one,” Lytvyn believes. The proportional election system could be a way to politically structure society, he added.
The legislative implementation of Constitutional amendments supported by Ukrainians in the national referendum could be carried out “in a way that doesn’t affect the interests of lawmakers,” President Kuchma’s chief of staff said. He warned, however, that the enactment of the changes will not be easy, because “political blocs and parties are focusing on their election campaigns.” Lytvyn argues that the Solons still have time left to pass the needed laws because “they will have to explain their positions to voters during the campaign.” The president has no levers to force Verkhovna Rada to enact changes to the Constitution, Lytvyn stressed. Because of this, President Kuchma can only appeal to the public and parliamentary factions and try to make his case heard. If lawmakers do not enact the changes “this will be a land mine as part of Ukrainian society could question the legitimacy of the December 1991 referendum” when Ukrainians overwhelmingly supported independence.
