VRU requiring President to suspend Chernovetskyi

The Verkhovna Rada is requiring that President Viktor Yuschenko suspend Leonid Chernovetskyi from the discharge of his duties as head of Kyiv municipal state administration, Ukrainian News reported.

Draft bylaw No.4504 was voted by 228 parliamentary deputies, when 226 votes required.

In particular, 153 MPs of the Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc faction supported the bylaw, 1 of the Party of Regions, 27 of the Communist Party, and 47 of the Our Ukraine - People's Self-Defense bloc faction.

Chernovetskyi is to be suspended while an ad hoc parliamentary investigatory commission is inquiring violation of the Constitution and of laws by Kyiv municipal council and Kyiv municipal administration officials.

Parliament extended the term for the commission to work into November 19.

By adopting the bylaw, the Rada also recommended Yuschenko to cancel Chernovetskyi's law-breaking orders on appointment of first deputy heads of the municipal administration.

In its turn, parliament recommended that the Cabinet of Ministers convene an extraordinary session to discuss the critical situation in Kyiv, cancel Chernovetskyi's law-breaking orders on appointment of administration the deputy heads.

Also the Rada recommended the government to prepare and bring in for consideration propositions on perfecting the legislation concerning organization of local self-government and executive power in the capital.

Moreover, parliament instructed the Counting Chamber, the Main Control and Audit Chamber and the State Tax Administration to jointly check the city hall for observance of budget and tax laws, and the Prosecutor-General’s Office and the Interior Affairs Ministry to provide legal assessment of the executives' actions.

As a reminder, the Verkhovna Rada on June 5 refused to recommend President Viktor Yuschenko consider the possibility of dismissing Chernovetskyi by directing the commission draft a new bylaw.

Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada Volodymyr Lytvyn is expecting parliament to again deal with this recommendation to Yuschenko on June 9-12.

On February 19, the Rada set up the commission to inquire violation of the Constitution and of laws by Kyiv council and Kyiv administration officials.