Mykola Tomenko: The Governmental Pension Reform is absolutely similar to the Scenario of the Tax Code Adoption
Mykola Tomenko, Deputy Chairman of The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, believes that the governmental pension reform is absolutely similar to the scenario of the Tax Code adoption. M.Tomenko claimed that appearance of the governmental bill (Reg. No. 7455) "On Legislative Support of the Pension System Reform" on December 13, 2010 was inexplicable, as the actual text version of the bill was available at The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine website only on December 21.
According to the Deputy Chairman, the second coincidence is as follows: "The opinion of experts and the parliament, let alone the pensioners, is neglected." Mykola Tomenko reminded that he and Valerii Sushkevych had registered the draft resolution on the parliamentary hearings "Pension Reform as a Part of the Economic Reform" on December 1, 2010. However, the resolution was rejected. Still, due to the motion of the President, The Verkhovna Rada resolved to hold the parliamentary hearings, and launch the pension reform afterwards. (On December 17, The Verkhovna Rada adopted the Resolution (Reg. No. 7387-1) "On the Parliamentary Hearings "The State of Implementation of the Pension Reform, and its Improvement" (February 16, 2011). However, M.Tomenko states that the governmental bill "gradually increases the retirement age for women from 55 to 60 years (for 6 months annually) since February 1, 2011."
"I will not be surprised by a possible third coincidence, if after the unanimous support of the pension reform by the majority, the President would veto the Law, and his representative would blame The Verkhovna Rada, not the Government or the authorities who drafted the bill," the Deputy Chairman of The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine declared.
M.Tomenko suggested that the bill "On Legislative Support of the Pension System Reform" should not be scrutinized before the parliamentary hearings and the expert review, "as it might provoke conflicts and public tension, as the Tax Code did."