What is a strong President and does the state need him?

The expert seminar “The Institute of presidency in the modern political system of Ukraine in the context of European experience. Comparative analysis.” took place in the National institute of strategic researches. The scientists of the NISR, of the NAS of Ukraine and universities, the experts of the leading centers of social and political researches participated in it. We call readers’ attention to the most debatable thesis of the participants.

Andriy KUDRYACHENKO,
doctor of historical sciences, professor
Stalin – against, Sakharov – for

The question about the introduction of the President’s institute was acute in the Soviet Union as far back as the Constitution of 1936 year was adopted in the soviet times. But at that time Stalin (and his point of view ruled over the party circles) offered the following answer to the put question: according to the system of our Constitution, that is the Constitution of the Soviet Union, there can’t be any individual President elected by the nation parallel with the Supreme Soviet and able to oppose to the Supreme Soviet; The president in the Soviet Union is collective and it is the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet.


Mykola MYKHAL’CHENKO,
president of the Ukrainian academy of
political sciences
«I am for the strong President»

If one reads attentively the history, he will see: when there was a strong leader in Ukraine, the state had a chance to become independent. But as soon as at least some centers of authority appeared some hetmans began to stretch the power and Ukraine dipped into the abyss of chaos.


Oleksiy HARAN’,
vice-president of the Fund «Eurasia»
in Ukraine
Presidential-premier republic

We have a situation similar in modification to the one France has, that is characterized, as they say, by the «split» (in a positive meaning), «two-headed» executive power, that is the President and the Prime Minister.


Volodymyr FESENKO
(Center of applied
political researches «Penta»)

The model of a strong hetman has never had a support in Ukraine. Ukraine usually lost its independence not because of the presence or absence of a strong power, but because somebody tried to strengthen greatly its power and for this purpose relied not on internal support in the country, but on the support of external forces. And as a result the one lost and made the country to lose its independence.


Vasyl’ KHRAMOV,
chief of the department of public service of the
Institute of the personnel training of Public
service of employment

The state of executive power in the person of the Cabinet of Ministers gets some new status that at the same time is concerned with the certain problems. The institute of presidency objects on a normative point to the Cabinet of Ministers. The great defect of the activity of state organs (and we have known that during all 15 years) is the inefficiency of caring the accepted decisions to its conclusion. The discourse about the strong institute of presidency as such - is a question of its efficiency and effectiveness.


Valeriy BEBYK,
doctor of political sciences,
professor, pro-rector of the
Public university «Ukraine»

The new Constitution is needed.
The nation undoubtedly wants a strong power. But it does not mean: the power of a strong President. It wants the harmony to be in the country. And this harmony can be provided by any model, if it is truly recorded first of all in the Constitution. The text of the Constitution is written out without the political scientists. The political model of government was not written out.

Volodymyr HORBATENKO,
doctor of political sciences, professor,
leading research worker of the
Institute of state and law
named after V. М. Korets’kyi

As regards a strong President and the situation concerned the institute of President, which is created in our country, it’s most likely that the soviet totalitarian system influenced on such institute. After all the nomenclature bureaucracy crawled over and it needed a master.


Petro Myronenko,
director of the Institute of
humanitarian technologies
Constitution - attempt № 6

I took the copy of the last Constitution of Ukraine. And, listening to the speeches, I paid attention to that I hold by this time the sixth Constitution for my 55 years. Plenary powers, duties, human rights were very well written out in them. But one might say that neither the previous constitutions nor this one are executed the way the people want. The plenary powers are written out so that the President can be both strong and weak. So the point is probably not in the Constitution. One needs to write out instead of 124 pages as in this Constitution, but at least 1000 pages, so that the President or any other state official could step left or right from it not a jot.


Oleksandr Derhachov,
leading research officer of the
Institute of political and ethnonational researches
named after І. Кuras of the NAS of Ukraine
The president is a basis of a political system

Ukraine is still a long way from finishing a certain transitional period. And the reference point on Europe for today – is rather more than just a reference point. We are still a long way from the standards.
The need for a strong power and a strong President exists.


Valentyn
BUSHANS’KYI,
candidate of political
sciences, assistant of the editor-in-chief –
chief of the department of covering
the questions of parliamentary activity in
the periodical of the
Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine «Viche»

We have an authoritarian culture. Our country is a peculiar materialization of Orvel’s fantasies. We get out of the authoritarianism and go to a democratic society. And that is why any debilitations of dictatorial potentialities, any debilitations of possibilities of some peremptory influences are positive. And not only at this moment, but also in an ontological measuring of the existence of society. That is the foreshortening of my comprehension of this process. And that is why I want to say: the debilitation of the presidential power, the strengthening of parliament’s power, the strengthening of local organs’ power – all that is a positive process.


Fedir MEDVID’,
candidate of philosophic sciences (the National
academy of state tax service)
And who are the parliamentarians?

We have analyzed the President’s features, but we have forgotten about the features of two other branches of political power. I am convinced: judging the list of national deputies who got into the Verkhovna Rada, the parliament will not be of the higher quality than the previous. So can we entrust more authorities to this Verkhovna Rada?
Both the law concerning the President of Ukraine and the law concerning the Verkhovna Rada and the Cabinet of Ministers are of a great necessity.


Ivan VARZAR,
professor (the National pedagogical university
named after M.P. Drahomanov)
Mykhalchenko’s square

It’s a high time now to separate the scientific notions: «government» and «administration».

Since the first of January it seems that in our country an interesting model is constituted – we have two rulers: the parliament and the President. The parliament is to govern the country by law and justice, and the President – by ideas.