Ukrainian President Zelensky presents bill to amend constitution on decentralization of power
The document was registered in the Ukrainian Parliament on December 13, but its contents have not yet been published. The registration card shows that President Zelensky has determined that this bill is urgent.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has submitted to the Verkhovna Rada (Parliament) a bill amending the constitution on decentralization of powers.
The bill was registered in the Ukrainian parliament on December 13, but its contents have not yet been made public. The registration card shows that Mr. Zelensky has determined that the bill is urgent.
According to Ukrainian Foreign Minister Vadym Prystaiko, the constitutional amendments on decentralization are in line with the Minsk agreements. “Ukraine is now committed to the existing agreements,” Prystaiko said.
Earlier, First Deputy Chairman of the ruling Servant of the People party in Ukraine Oleksandr Kornienko said that the constitutional amendments would be adopted in December 2019 or January 2020.
Local government reform in Ukraine began under the previous president, Petro Poroshenko, but was not completed. In 2015, the Verkhovna Rada approved the first constitutional amendments related to decentralization.
In particular, these amendments transfer important functions, including financial functions, from the central and regional governments to local authorities. In addition, the Constitution of Ukraine provides for a special status for certain areas of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions.
In early September, President Zelensky ordered the completion of decentralization reforms and the holding of local elections on the new administrative basis in 2020.
According to Andrei Yermak - Assistant to the President of Ukraine, the constitutional amendment involves transferring some powers to the regions. Certain areas in the two regions of Donetsk and Lugansk may have more powers, however, "there is no discussion about federalization."
On December 12, the Ukrainian Parliament extended the law on special status in some areas of Donetsk and Lugansk provinces until December 31, 2020. President Zelensky said that this law will continue to be temporarily effective.
According to the Ukrainian leader, Kiev can now easily continue to implement the law on special status and then implement the “Steinmeier Formula” - which stipulates the mechanism of enacting laws on self-government of local authorities in some regions of Donbass.
On election day in these regions, the law will come into effect temporarily and after the publication of the report of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) on the voting results, the law will come into effect permanently./
