Truant “voting” in Verkhovna Rada here to stay

Despite the clear stipulation in Ukraine’s Constitution that MPs vote in person, it is standard in Ukraine for a ludicrously small number of MPs physically present to “pass laws” using the deputy cards of their party colleagues. Nor is this likely to change in the near future, it would seem.  Members of the opposition parties – Batkivshchyna, UDAR and VO Svoboda have registered a draft law on amendments to the Verkhovna Rada Regulations.  The bill proposes an electronic form of forming which would make it impossible for MPs to vote for others.  They have called on the Party of the Regions to support the bill.

Volodymyr Lytvyn, outgoing Speaker whose smaller bloc in parliament joined up with the Party of the Regions and the communists in 2010, told Liga News on Monday that the bill will not get the requisite 226 votes needed and that the issue will be left to the new post-election parliament.  He also suggests that some members of the opposition would also vote against. 

As reported, from 1 February 2011 through 13 January 2012 the cards of three Party of the Regions MPs: Rinat Akhmetov; Serhiy Momot and Vasyl Stelmashenko – received electronic registration for every session, while not once having written registration.

Akhmetov’s card “voted” 2, 982 times;

Stelmashenko’s – 2784 times;

Momot’s – 2703 times.

During an analogous survey carried out from 1 January 2010 to 14 January 2011, Rinat Akhmetov (or his card) was kept ghostly company by two other Party of the Regions MPs: Serhiy Kiy and Volodymyr Maltsev.