Photo from UNIAN
Leader of the Agrarian Party of Ukraine Vitaliy Skotsyk claims the memorandum of cooperation between Ukraine and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) reveals a cynical lie by the Ukrainian government and unprecedented abuse of power, as the Cabinet is only an executive body and it cannot force the parliament into adopting laws, as is promised to foreign lenders.
"The memorandum with the IMF says Ukraine pledges that the Verkhovna Rada will pass a bill on farm land sale by the end of May 2017 in order to receive the fourth loan tranche [worth $1 billion]. This will allow the current moratorium on the sale of land to lose its force from the end of 2017. Thus, this provides for immediate sale of land in public and private ownership. But it is the government that signs the memorandum with the IMF. So, tell me who has allowed the executive body to make Rada members buy a pig in a poke and to promise creditors the adoption [of the bill]?" he wondered.
The politician has noted that no one yet knows what kind of document the government is working on.
Read alsoFT: Ukrainians will finally feel benefit of reforms this year, says PM"Back in October, Ukraine's Prime Minister [Volodymyr Groysman] told Ukrainians that the land market would not be introduced in a hurry, and there could not be any decisions about the launch of farmland sale operations without broad debates on a market model. So, tell me who has seen the bill the government has been drawing up? We have heard only statements by Deputy Minister Maksym Martyniuk [First Deputy Minister of Agricultural Policy and Food of Ukraine] about some of its [bill] clauses, which, judging by the text of the memorandum, are as false as Groysman's statements," Skotsyk added.
In his words, the government is preparing the document behind the curtain, as it is aware that Ukrainian society simply cannot support it.
Read alsoCost of IMF loan: Ukraine seeks to allow farmland sale from 2018"There could not have been any dialogue with the public. The government is well aware that all public opinion polls show that over 70% of Ukrainians are against the sale of land, and over 90% of agrarian entrepreneurs have not means to buy it. Therefore, there had been no intention to organize a referendum, as it should be, since the Constitution states that only the people are the owners of the land, and only they can made use of it. In order to steal the land from Ukrainians, the authorities created a 'screen,' an illusion of debates, having hired various 'grantees' who 'sing' what foreign customers wants to hear," Skotsyk said.
The politician stressed that the Agrarian Party would not allow the government to sell the wealth of the nation, and he had launched a nationwide campaign to collect signatures under the slogan "We won't let them steal the land!" to safeguard the Ukrainian land.