The referendum will give every Ukrainian the opportunity to feel a long-forgotten sense of self-importance for the state,” Ruslan Stefanchuk
02 February 2021, 09:15
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“I would like to remind, that on August 29, 2019, on the first day of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine work, the President of Ukraine submitted the bill No.1015 “On Amendments to Art. 93 of the Constitution of Ukraine (on the legislative initiative of the people)”. It was the first of a large block of democracy bills. The second was the law on the all-Ukrainian referendum. Further, other bills will be considered, in particular, on the local referendum, which has already been worked out and will be presented soon,” said the First Vice Speaker of the Parliament of Ukraine.
In addition, the politician denied the information about the mandatory presence of a member of the Central Election Commission at the meeting of the initiative group formed to initiate the referendum, as well as the possibility of the President to delay the decision to hold an all-Ukrainian referendum.
According to him, the law №3612 prescribes a referendum procedure to avoid any abuse. According to the First Vice Speaker of the Parliament of Ukraine, there are five things that cannot be the subject of a referendum.
“These are those that contradict the Constitution of Ukraine, generally accepted principles and norms of international law. Second – which abolish or restrict the constitutional rights and freedoms of people and citizens. Third – which are aimed at eliminating the independence of Ukraine, violation of state sovereignty or territorial integrity of Ukraine. The fourth is the issue of taxes, budget and amnesty. And fifth, which are the responsibility of law enforcement, prosecutors or courts. The referendum for many countries is a stopcock for the people, who are trying to stop the actions of the government if the citizens do not agree with it,” he said.
In addition, Ruslan Stefanchuk denied the information that the people's decision in referendums is not necessary for the authorities to take into account.
“The referendum is mandatory. Authorities must implement the decisions of the people. For the first time in the history of Ukraine, we refused consultative referendums. Because the cost of holding one referendum, according to various estimates, is like the cost of an election campaign taking place in Ukraine (approximately UAH 2 billion). We believe that spending such funds to find out the opinion of the population and do nothing is an illicit luxury,” said the First Deputy Chairperson of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine.
Finally, Ruslan Stefanchuk noted: “A referendum is not only the right of every citizen, but also the responsibility for one's choice. Camillo Cavour once said: "We created Italy, now we need to create Italians. I really want the referendum, as a powerful tool of direct democracy, to give every Ukrainian the opportunity to feel a long-forgotten sense of self-importance for the state, as well as the ability to take responsibility for their choices.”