The president says that the formation of a party government is premature, due to the lack of stable national parties.
Photo: Dmitry Azarov
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Opposition Wants a United Russia Govt.
Some parties in the State Duma think Vladimir Putin should form a party government when he becomes prime minister under President Elect Dmitry Medvedev. Then, say members of the Communist Party and LDPR, the party in power can be held accountable for government policy. “The person who helped United Russia receive a high result in the parliamentary elections is responsible for the policy that the party implements. In the same way, the party that has the majority should form the government, nominate the chairman of the government [and] bear responsibility for state policy,” stated Ivan Melnikov, first deputy chairman of the central committee of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation. United Russia leader Boris Gryzlov stated at a press conference on April 7 that Putin will be offered the leadership of the party at the party congress that begins today.
The idea of forming a party government has been proposed before. In 2004, as a result of discussion of that idea, minister were allowed to join parties. The topic arose again after the parties winning in regional elections were allowed, at the initiative of President Vladimir Putin, to nominate a candidate for regional head. The president himself says, however, that such a step is premature, due to the lack of stable national parties.
The United Russia Party has been in favor of a party government, but it is now not commenting on the issue, leaving Putin free to form the government at his discretion. Gryzlov expressed the hope at his recent press conference that the current ministers who are party members would retain their posts. They are Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Zhukov, Emergencies Minister Sergey Shoigu, Agriculture Minister Alexey Gordeev and Natural Resources Minister Yury Trutnev. Kommersant has obtained information that several other ministers will be nominated at the party congress.
Analysts doubt that the a party government will be formed. They point out that United Russia is not an independent political party with an ideology and membership base. Rather, it “broadcasts the orders of the presidential administration,” observed political scientist Boris Makarenko of the Center for Political Technology.
www.kommersant.com
All the Article in Russian as of Apr. 14, 2008
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