An election poster showing the portraits of Russia's President Vladimir Putin and First Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev
Photo: Alexander Miridonov
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Ex-President Stripped Of Historic Legacy
The bill on creating Centers of Former RF President Historic Legacy that provides for generous budget appropriations has faced tough opposition of lawyers. The Expert Council of State Duma’s Speaker deliberated on the bill yesterday; huge costs and uncontrolled spending of government’s funds for ex-presidents of the country gave rise to evident apprehension.
The bill was submitted to the State Duma in January; it was initiated by the members of Fair Russia faction and by Sergei Mironov, leader of the Fair Russia Party and speaker of the Federation Council. Under the document, the decision on creating the Center of Former RF President Historic Legacy is to be taken by the president’s administration on agreement with the outgoing president. The president is to order the center’s establishment in a year after he assumes the office, so if the bill is ultimately passed, Dmitry Medvedev will be the first person benefiting from it.
The assets of the Center will include archive documents, public library and museum collection formed from belongings of former president or related to him/her. The ex-president will head the Trustee Board of the Center and his successors may become members of such board after the death of ex-president.
In its status, the Center will be a non-profit organization but it won’t be governed by the respective act setting forth the controlling procedures for such organizations. Its accounting will be limited by the annual publication of an independent audit conclusion.
Under the bill, the government’s bodies “have no right to interfere into activities of the Center unless it is stipulated in the federal laws.” The Center will be funded from federal budget; creation of each center will cost 1.225 billion rubles to it, and the annual maintenance reaches 122.5 million rubles. The government is to appropriate land, buildings and other assets to the center, which whereabouts will be the motherland of the former president but which will have an affiliate in Moscow.
www.kommersant.com
All the Article in Russian as of Mar. 07, 2008
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