The consideration of Yagoferov’s complaint is suspended
12.12.2001
As the Lugansk branch of the Voter’s committee anticipated, the Lugansk oblast court did not satisfy the complaint of Anatoliy Yagoferov at the decision of the town council that stopped his mayor’s power before the proper term.
The court decision is not based on any consideration of the essence of the matter, but on some purely procedural questions. The court ruled that Yagoferov had not indicated in his complaint which rights of him were violation by the town council. His arguments concerning the mayor’s rights the court refused to consider, since Yagoferov is not the proper claimant in this question. The reason given is that on the day of handing claim Yagoferov was already not the mayor: his powers were terminated by the town council, and he did not turned to court with the demand to restore him on the post. Besides, the violation of the rights of a mayor does not figure in the list of rights about which a mayor may turn to court (item 15 of Article 42 of the Law ‘About self-rule in Ukraine’. Due to this the court ruled that the case must not be considered in court according to item 1, Article 227 of the Criminal-Procedural Code, and closed the case.
Anatoliy Yagoferov declared at a press conference that he would turn to the Supreme Court for the cassation of the Donetsk oblast court decision, and, if his claim were declined, he would hand the claim for his restoration at the mayor’s post. That was the method recommended to his by the Donetsk judge.
Our prediction: Yagoferov will win his case, since there was a precedent in Ukraine. Last year the Supreme Court of Ukraine cancelled as illegal the similar decision of the Lugansk town council of 1997, when the powers of Aleksey Danilov were terminated under the same circumstances. But the decision in favor of Yagoferov will be taken not earlier than the spring of 2002, when the decision of restoration him on the post would be taken too late. The plan is simple: just to waste a little time.
The court decision is not based on any consideration of the essence of the matter, but on some purely procedural questions. The court ruled that Yagoferov had not indicated in his complaint which rights of him were violation by the town council. His arguments concerning the mayor’s rights the court refused to consider, since Yagoferov is not the proper claimant in this question. The reason given is that on the day of handing claim Yagoferov was already not the mayor: his powers were terminated by the town council, and he did not turned to court with the demand to restore him on the post. Besides, the violation of the rights of a mayor does not figure in the list of rights about which a mayor may turn to court (item 15 of Article 42 of the Law ‘About self-rule in Ukraine’. Due to this the court ruled that the case must not be considered in court according to item 1, Article 227 of the Criminal-Procedural Code, and closed the case.
Anatoliy Yagoferov declared at a press conference that he would turn to the Supreme Court for the cassation of the Donetsk oblast court decision, and, if his claim were declined, he would hand the claim for his restoration at the mayor’s post. That was the method recommended to his by the Donetsk judge.
Our prediction: Yagoferov will win his case, since there was a precedent in Ukraine. Last year the Supreme Court of Ukraine cancelled as illegal the similar decision of the Lugansk town council of 1997, when the powers of Aleksey Danilov were terminated under the same circumstances. But the decision in favor of Yagoferov will be taken not earlier than the spring of 2002, when the decision of restoration him on the post would be taken too late. The plan is simple: just to waste a little time.