by
Martin Banks
Vadim Rabinovich heads one of the opposition parties in Ukraine called "For Life" which is currently riding high in the opinion polls. The Ukrainian MP believes the country's economic wealth remains largedly untapped and has tabled a programme designed to "unlock" this potential.
Rabinovich, who also heads Human Rights Committee in the Ukraine Parliament,is particularly scathing of the Ukraine government's economic record which, he says, lacks "any clear, understandable vision." He went on, "Since the revolution, our governments have chosen two courses. The first is total corruption, the second is the absolute inability to manage those assets that fell into their hands. Today there is no development programme and no projects for the future. The budget is being wasted and everything goes to keep officials."
There was no vision for the country's economic development, he said. His condemnation comes after the country's central bank said this week that Ukraine's decision to impose an economic blockade on territory held by Russian-backed separatists will drag down economic growth to 1.9 percent this year from an earlier estimate of 2.8 percent.
President Petro Poroshenko announced that Ukraine would halt cargo traffic with rebel-held areas, formalising an existing blockade launched in January by activists. The move prompted the International Monetary Fund to delay disbursing another aid tranche to Ukraine's war-torn economy - part of a $17.5 billion bailout programme - until the impact of the blockade has been assessed.
Rabinovich who is also chairman of the party, said the country has great untapped economic potential, not least in the agro-industrial sector but adds, "I am categorically against the fact that they do not have any clear, understandable vision of the country's economic development and the way out of the deadlock in which we have been driven. We need to look and understand at where we can be useful."
The businessman-turned politician is as dismissive of the other opposition parties in Ukraine as the government, saying, "Unfortunately, today, except for the party "For Life", the other two, who consider themselves opposition, have already been in power. "They returned, calling themselves opposition but they meet with the same people, continue to resolve matters in their own interests. They are all from the same Communist system - there are no new faces. People Yulia Tymoshenko and Petro Poroshenko were already at the same table 15 years ago but with different presidents. They can change nothing."
Looking to the future, Rabinovich, the current owner of several media companies, proposes a three-pronged action plan to turn Ukraine into the "Switzerland of the East." This, he said, includes a new constitution and new "social contract" between the state and people. He explained, "First of all, we seek a neutral, independent Ukraine - "Switzerland of Eastern Europe" - based on three wings."
He adds, "The first is agriculture because, as we have large land areas, we can produce natural products without GMOs.The second is high-tech. Ukrainians have a high educational level and enjoy recognition in many leading countries in high-tech production." The third proposal is a banking system that, he argues, could serve Western and Eastern Europe as well as Asia - "just like Switzerland."
He goes on, "We have to build this all, plus social programmes, to keep people in the country. We have huge resources and big opportunities. But to achieve this a total war on corruption has to begin."
Rabinovich,who has been likened to President Trump, partly because he is colourful character with a past to match. He is head of Jewish community in Ukraine and chairman of the European Jewish Parliament. He's earned his "Trump of Ukraine" nickname because he is seen as being very different compared to other politicians. He had never participated in political activities until the last presidential election in 2014 when he amassed some 480,000 votes and was elected to Ukraine's Verkhovna Rada.
According to current polls, "For Life" is among the three strongest political parties in Ukraine. Rabinovich also enjoys similarly favourable personal ratings.
By: N. Peter Kramer
