Ukraine's Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk has named his candidates for the new government.
The list of the candidates was published on the Cabinet of Ministries’ official website on Nov. 14.
It is up to the parliamentary coalition to discuss and nominate the government members. But three weeks after the parliamentary elections of Oct. 26, the coalition is not yet signed. Many argue that the delay is taking place because the two winning parties, controlled by president and prime minister, are into tough negotiations about the government seats.
“This published list is the beginning of a public discussion,” reads the statement by Yatsenyuk.
Yatsenyuk offers the three leading parties of the parliamentary elections of Oct. 26 to delegate the candidates for the ministers. Most of the candidates chosen by Yatsenuyk come from his own party People’s Front, Bloc of Petro Poroshenko and Samopomich (Self-help). Yulia Tymoshenko’s Batkivshchyna, that came last in the elections, was offered one office, too.
Yatsenyuk suggested three deputy prime ministers to be Poroshenko’s Volodymyr Groisman (in charge of regional policy), Batkivshchyna’s Ihor Zhdanov (humanitarian affairs), and Samopomich’s Ivan Myroshnychenko (agriculture). The position of the agriculture-focused deputy prime minister is a new post suggested by Yatsenyuk.
Yatsenyuk wishes to keep three ministers of the current government at their positions.
Arsen Avakov is proposed to remain the head of the Internal Affairs Ministry, the institution that oversees the police and National Guard. Once an ally of Yulia Tymoshenko, Avakov is on People’s Front party list. He has been the interior minister since March.
Yatsenyuk wants to keep Pavlo Petrenko, a member of his party, in Justice Ministry, and actor Yevhen Nyshchuk as the minister of culture.
Vitaliy Lysovenko, currently a deputy minister of finances, was offered to chair the ministry. In a comment at the Cabinet’s website Yatsenyuk calls him “a technocrat, who has been in charge of negotiations with the International Monetary Fund.”
Lawmaker elected with Poroshenko’s party, Leonid Kozachenko may head the Agriculture Ministry.
Another Poroshenko party’s lawmaker Dmytro Shymkiv is suggested as the new minister of economic development. Shymkiv was in charge of developing Poroshenko’s “Strategy-2020,” a plan of Ukraine’s development that the president presented soon after being elected.
Andriy Kobolev, head of the state oil and gas company Naftogas Ukrainy, was offered for the post of the energy minister.
The candidate for the Social Policy Ministry is Poroshenko’s Pavlo Rozenko, and the Health Ministry may get Vasyl Lazoryshynts, a surgeon.
Former swimming champion turned politician Denys Silantiyev may head the Ministry of Sports and Youth Affairs.
Hanna Hopko, the lawmaker on the top of the Samopomich party list, is offered as a candidate for Ecology Ministry.
Yatsenyuk left it up to Poroshenko Bloc to pick the candidates for the Foreign Affairs and Defense Ministries. The name of the head of Infrustructure Ministry is also up to discussion.
Kyiv Post editor Olga Rudenko can be reached at [email protected]
