Kremlin Slams Luzhkov For Idea Of Restoring Governor Elections

MOSCOW, November 19 (Itar-Tass) -- Shortly after the presidential proposal for amendments to the Constitution extending the tenure of office of the head of state and State Duma members one of Russia's political heavyweights, Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov, came up with the idea of restoring direct elections of governors. He did so of his own accord, without an authorization from above.

While the president-proposed amendments to the Constitution are rolling through parliament quite smoothly (weak objections by a handful of opponents excluded) Luzhkov's demarche has triggered great anger at the very top, among Luzhkov's fellow party members inside United Russia, and from many governors, as well.

Analysts believe that the Moscow mayor was concerned not so much about wider democracy, as about his personal benefits and gains.

That the current situation in Russia allowed - in his opinion - for restoring direct elections of governors Luzhkov said on television on November 17. He recalled that in the past he supported President Vladimir Putin's proposal candidates for governorship should be nominated by the president because "in those days it was necessary to consolidate the state potential and state power."

Now, Luzhkov claimed, direct elections might be restored, because "the one who has been elected on a contested basis by the people of the region would be more legitimate in terms of how the public at large feels about such a person and how the one elected feels about oneself."

Since 2004 candidates for governors' posts have been nominated by the Russian president. Such nominees are presented to regional legislatures for approval. There have been no instances of attempts at resistance by the local legislators, though.

In his state-of-the nation address to the Federal Assembly on November 5 President Dmitry Medvedev voiced the idea candidates for governors should be proposed only by those parties that have gained a majority in the elections to local legislative bodies.

As for Luzhkov's idea, the president rejected it in a rather harsh way. He told the media on Tuesday he regarded any changes to the current system of governors' elections "unrealistic and impermissible."

"If some regional leaders do not like it, they should recall they are not private persons, and that they should feel free to tender their resignations," the president warned, without mentioning the name of the Moscow Mayor in person.

State Duma speaker Boris Gryzlov said Moscow's mayor voiced his private point of view, not shared by the United Russia party. Other senior party functionaries joined in.

One of Russia's old-time governors, head of the Sverdlovsk Region Eduard Rossel, described the question of restoring direct elections of Russia's regions as not very timely.

"The situation in the country today requires addressing the problem of an economic upturn, and not creating situations in which shallow rhetoric may propel one to power," Rossel said.

The governor of the Ivanovo Region, Mikhail Menh, believes that direct elections of regional administrations would breed corruption, because for the sake of forming their election funds candidates have to conclude various deals with the local business elite.

Luzhkov was quick to respond that he had been misunderstood and that in reality he had in mind some far-away possibility, but by that moment too many had already voiced disagreement with the mayor's statement.

Analysts say Luzhkov's proposal was inconsistent, to say the least. At a certain moment the Moscow mayor himself came out strongly in support of canceling direct elections, the more so, since inside the 125 municipalities of Moscow not a single local leader is elected, the daily Nezavisimaya Gazeta quotes the chairman of the All-Russia Council of Local Self-Government, Vyacheslav Timchenko, as saying. "All are appointed. That looks like a very strange double standard policy."

"Many analysts are curious what is it that has changed in Luzhkov's own position or in the country, that made him to raise this theme," says political scientist Ivan Yartsev on the Politcom.ru website.

Luzhkov demonstrated that the idea of restoring gubernatorial elections was still alive. And the moment for bringing it to the fore again was very suitable - everybody is discussing the president's proposed amendments to the constitution. In this context Luzhkov's proposal does not look like a manifestation of great dissent.

"Amid the strong rumors the Moscow mayor's resignation is unavoidable it was surely reasonable to use such an occasion to call for restoring governors' electivity. In case of direct elections Luzhkov would be playing a home game and surely easily beat any candidate, even a Kremlin-backed one, quite easily," the political scientist said.

Luzhkov's proposal must have been the last drop that caused the cup of the Kremlin's patience to overflow.

"Dmitry Medvedev's proposed amendments to the Constitution triggered too many other proposals from below. Some wish the presidential term to be prolonged to seven years, or even eight ones.
Others wish a fundamental re-writing of the Constitution. But suddenly there emerges this Luzhkov with his governor election talk. This takes us too close to liberalizing the entire system of government, the Kremlin must have thought," Yartsev said.

In the meantime, the presidential amendments to the Constitution have been steaming through the State Duma at an incredible speed.

The idea of extending the presidential term of office and that of the legislators from four years to six years and five years respectively, as well as establishing parliamentary control of the Cabinet, and obliging the latter to present annual accounts to the State Duma were adopted by the State Duma in the second reading on Wednesday. And on Friday, the amendments will be given the third, final reading, State Duma Speaker Gryzlov promised.

As he proposed the amendments in his message to the Federal Assembly, President Medvedev said he was suggesting not a reform of the Constitution but its fine-tuning.

Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said later that the proposed changes were devoid of any personal dimension and last Tuesday President Medvedev explained the extension of the president and legislators' powers were expected to produce "a more stable legal model."