Today we can observe, on the one hand, almost royal style of government that is cultivated by powerholders.

On the other hand, really the situation of people who deprived of their rights and levers that allow them to influence politicians in the exercise of powers and even more - bring them to justice.

And what if you think about how the power system should work in a version close to standard and consider the implementation of its power and authority as a kind of management? Let it be a state one but the one which has the same features and functions as classic management.

So all of us, citizens of Ukraine, are in the role of "owner" - in fact, under Article 5 of the Constitution, the only source of power in the state is the people.

Next. The people are the employer, who hires managers, namely the MPs who form the government; deputies of local councils, mayors and the President for good governance at national and local levels.

Choosing their representatives in government, citizens delegate a set of powers to them. Therefore people count on productive government activities and as a result, on the normal situation and the dynamic development in various fields - economics, public administration, social and humanitarian policy, international relations...

As in the classical management, citizens (employers) should be able to control their hired managers in the government. And if the activities of these managers do not benefit - to punish them for negligence or poor work.

Two-bit for such promises

And now it's time to return to reality. Now the politicians are which are in power have  no incentive to solve problems of people - a priority for policy makers is only their own benefit, political perspective, the ability stay in power for the sake of power.

In turn, citizens can not influence the activity of politicians, control the fulfillment of their promises, make take responsibility for what promised but not made.

For example, where are 5 million jobs that Yushchenko had promised in 2004? Where is a contract army, which Tymoshenko said about in the fall of 2007? Where is the enhanced status of the Russian language, which Yanukovych and Party of Regions promised several elections in a row? The list goes on...

Besides, responsibility of power it’s a real "blank spot" of domestic law. Thus, the Constitution clearly states a democratic way of coming to power (by election, appointment) and how to execute the received powers.

However, the following important aspects are completely missing - how to secure the commitment of the authorities to the people, how to monitor their implementation, and what responsible should powers bare for default on their commitments?

For example, in the law there is no mechanism for revocation of a deputy president and the impeachment of the President proceedings are unregulated and actually impossible ...

Handling power

It is well known that people who have authority are not personally interested in being under the control of citizens, and even more so - meet the people for business and inaction.

Not only are there no appropriate mechanisms in the legislation. But the mighty also actively manipulate with public opinion by trying to shove the blame for the failure of citizens "state managers" to citizen.

This thing should be considered more in detail.

In domestic political and electoral the practice of psychological guilt complex is widely used. The following idea is actively popularized - the situation, the lamentable situation is the guilt of neither the government which proved to be ineffective nor politicians who were useless but  ... of the very people who elected those politicians.

However, this rig able to run in the public consciousness is a blatant manipulation through which, in the mass consciousness, the responsibility for the actions of politicians in power is deftly put on citizens.

"Just not cheat us!" - I want to tell family politicians. We, the citizens of Ukraine, delegate you authority and trust you the important work front. And, obviously, it should be this way: coped - well done, keep working. Not handled –good bye, we hire new managers.

The reality, unfortunately, indicates the opposite. Now the voters have no confidence that when certain politicians received the votes and the credit of national confidence come to power, the country will get positive changes.

As a result, the elections themselves depreciate, turn into a process without purpose or results, and the country actually faces the desecration of democracy. That is to say, formally they adhere to democratic procedures (national elections, etc.) but really the process does not lead to necessary changes, for example, to change of the government course that make a slip or the situation in the country.

And existing in Ukraine "The scenery of democracy" do not allow to draw people of power to justice.

"... The law is to burn down the nature of bureaucrats"

It’s necessary to legislatively assign responsibilities of politicians of all levels and ranks who are in power to the execution of their obligations.

The hardest task is to create conditions under which the government will clearly fulfill the obligations taken; to make the process controlled by society; to develop an effective mechanism in which the politicians will be guaranteed to take responsibility for their actions or inactions.

Thus, a wide field for legislative work appears: gaps in laws concerning civil responsibility of the power and officials endowed with it must sooner or later get filled. This is a set of questions to be answered clearly, at the level of mechanics:

Block1. Efficiency of managers in power.

How to check that just this very politician will benefit? How to estimate the level of his competence? How to get ensured that the politician will act in favor of the voters?

In what way must the elected representatives, if they work inefficiently, answer to the citizens (for e.g. bringing harm to the state and people interests instead of benefitting)?

Block 2. Control and responsibility.

How can citizens assess the inefficiency of politicians in power? What should be the forms of responsibility of people in power to the voters? How can people affect the change of the course of the politician who does not really benefit?

How can a chosen politician be withdrawn, expressed no confidence in, dismissed from the position? What leverage must citizens have to stimulate politicians work efficiently? How, if people showed discontent, to avoid election of a new political force, which implements the same policy as the previous one?

Stick algorithm into irresponsibility!

So, it is necessary to create a system which makes violation or non-fulfillment of commitments not profitable for politicians both materially and morally, painful for the image and prospects. It should be an algorithm that will automatically detect violations of obligations and provide specific kinds of responsibility for that.

Proposal One. Politicians themselves in the form of the Election Agreement define certain obligations they take in case of being appointed for the position. In the Election Agreement the liability for violation of them is fixed; criteria of control are set.
 
Proposal Two. Data about the obligations fulfillment of stipulated in the Electoral Agreement are presented in strictly certain forms and are equal for all politicians. This formalization and unification will make the process transparent and controlled.
 
It is important that politicians themselves give their consent to process the data on their implementation of commitments made by specialized computer software. A schedule under which evaluation of effectiveness of people in power is made is set up (eg, after the end of each calendar year - for the officials; after the next session of Parliament - for MPs, etc.).
 
Proposal Three. Completed forms are processed by the principle similar to the method of testing in schools; as a result, of politicians get points. The number of points gained determines the ‘politician’s destiny’: for example, 70 out of 100 points – continues working. Scored less – dismissal, the ban on new election, nationwide contempt ...
 
It's time to concentrate. And start having pleasure
 
"Do, do something!" - with these words doctor Gruzdev in the famous film "The place of meeting can’t be changed" applies to investigators from MCID. And another famous doctor - a prominent Russian physiologist Ivan Pavlov - formulated and described two classic incentives that motivate people to do and change something.
 
The first is the desire to avoid discomfort. The second is the desire to get pleasure.

Consider of the process of electing politicians and empowerment of them with authorities in this aspect.
 
Today in Ukraine citizens in the process of political choice are largely governed with assumptions: perhaps the politician X will be good, maybe he will do anything. And as to the choice on the principle of ‘lesser evil’, which so often happens in Ukrainian politics, it goes without saying.
 
Even so, citizens have absolutely no guarantees that the new politician will be at least somehow fundamentally better than the previous ones. Voting on this principle is a retreat, escape from the problem, the desire to avoid troubles brought by the former politician (actually, realization of the first implementation of incentives, as described by Dr. Pavlov).
 
 However, it is not a solution of the problem but its preservation, transfer to another state. From a simple change of faces in power nothing will change. A new politician may be even worse than the previous one.
 
It’s necessary to change the system – the way that the government was working for the benefit of people. And the answer to the question of what to do in order people could benefit from the activities of those in power, will be in a form of positive thinking (by Pavlov - a desire to get pleasure); it will really change things for the better. And the answer is simple and clear: to make our government accountable to the people.
 
Instead of the epilogue
 
Responsible government is a condition under which authorities execute their powers effectively and benefit the people and citizens have the right to choose the power for a certain period, directly (or through representatives) to monitor the work and evaluate such activities after the term of office.
 
Without a mechanism of the responsibility of government, elections are meaningless, and the existing order of things discredits people's trust in democratic institutions.
 
Citizens themselves should be the driving force, able to change the situation and show the powers their place. Anyone who the situation does not suit to, today the situation of total irresponsibility of authorities, who sees solutions to problems and is ready for constructive dialogue and decisive action, is urged to unite and work together.
 
Sergey Zhukov, head of lawyers’ company, Dnepropetrovsk, for UP

Every conscious citizen of our state not long ago had the opportunity to participate in the elections of the President of Ukraine - the head of state, guarantor of the Constitution; the person who would affect the future of the country, who would set the main directions of state development for the next five years.

Election of the President was held through free, universal, direct, equal and secret vote of citizens of Ukraine. The following illusion was fully developed and imposed - if people elect the President, then it depends on the people who will be the Head of the State. In reality it is not true. And everyone knows that. The current system of electing the President makes illusory the "choice" of the people, depriving them not only from the right for choice, but the leveling the very idea of democratic elections as well.

In the ancient world from whence the tradition of elections came, election of the ruler by people was the highest form of democracy. However, in those times democracy provided that voters know who is elected to office personally and could evaluate his human and professional qualities. You know personally and you vote – that was the sense of ancient democracy.

Today it is impossible to know the candidate personally: there are too many voters. In order the people hear about the candidate and know his face, hundreds of millions of dollars are spent and the candidate for an office position will still have to work out that money to their sponsors.

It turns out that people elect a head of state in appearance, with emotions, imposed by advertising and by promises that the candidate talks. Thus, the choice has no sense because the appearance of the candidate and his promise based confirmed by nothing do not cause changes that would satisfy the needs of the people.

The country on the brink. Brink of collapse. Or in the throes of rebirth? Answer will be known soon. And this response depends on the position of each of us.


Nightmare in the economy and the permanent crisis in politics not only burst the country into a depression, but also intensified public initiative. This phenomenon is caused by simple and significant fact. Anyone who can think critically, understand that such living can not go on!
 

State authorities are unable to effectively run the country – this became clear for millions of citizens who felt the impact of economic crisis, the influence of which was only exacerbated by the political elite: the struggle for power, reluctance to see and solve problems, its inaction and loss of time, which were truly is lost...


In Ukraine, early parliamentary elections are appointed with extraordinary frequency. However, each campaign again and again proposes the same parties and political leaders.


In the eyes of voters all politicians and political forces are the same liars and hypocrites. The question is: Who is to choose?
 

The root of evil is the situation that today the election system does not meet the goals, to achieve which it was set up. Holding elections or the electing of "new" power is necessary for national development and meeting the needs of society. However, we know that our country everything goes wrong.
 

Elections without choice, logic and common sense.
 

In the course of the parliamentary elections, regardless of the electoral system, each subject of the election process whether parties or candidates for election have their own program.
 

However the program is not a document which sets out the behavior of candidate after the election, nor is necessary for implementation. The activity of a politician or party is usually radically different from what is written in the program.
 

It was, for example, with the abolition of parliamentary immunity. During the 2006-2007 elections, virtually all political forces regularly declared the need for its abolition in their programs. However, the relevant law was not adopted...
 

I am convinced that voting for specific parties or blocks without securing their commitment to the voters, leads to irresponsible behavior of political players after the election. Now citizens have absolutely no control over politicians who they elected to power themselves.


Even voting for "new" politicians who are not responsible to the people who elected them, will not change the situation in the country. Citizens again and again find themselves deceived in their expectations.
 

Ukraine does not need such Parliament as we have now; elections lose their relevance and logic, because voters are "sick" on political apathy, they can not consciously affect change the political course in the country after the elections and the possibility of recall the politician/party already elected or affect his/its policy during the execution of authority.
 

How to change the situation?
 

Vote not for individuals but for commitment!
 

For many people the following steps would seem radical, but my experience of the lawyer tells me - the situation will not get off the ground another way.


The following principle must become the main innovation for the election: voters vote not for a particular politician, block or party but for a set of specific political and legal obligations of the subjects of election process.

 
The essence of the idea is the following. Before the elections (for example, to the Parliament) each political party participating in the electoral process necessarily publishes Electoral Agreement in the official printed edition.


This is a certain program of the political power after winning the elections. This document must contain the essential clauses: obligations as to implementation of reforms, specific steps and time-frame for their implementation. And what is very important, in the Election Agreement the responsibility for the failure of these commitments should be clearly indicated.

 
To realize these commitments, I think, it is necessary to raise the passing score. The current threshold of 3%, as the elections of 2007 showed, allows to 5-4 political forces to pass to VR.

 
When increasing the threshold to 10%, 2-3 blocks or parties will get to the Parliament. They should be fully responsible for the obligations stipulated in the electoral agreements.

 
At the elections on the basis of the Election Agreement we will return the main thing - necessity of choice. The voter votes not for an approved by somebody from outside politician but for a specific system of obligations confirmed by the responsibility of politicians or parties.


The politician selected on such terms should clearly understand: violating the Election Agreement or not following the contract obligations, he condemns himself to the responsibilities specified in the Agreemen. It would be very appropriately if he fined with the ban to run for a new election.


Thus, each political party after coming to power must have a clear action plan. And society will get an effective mechanism to control the implementation of the obligations which is described simply: did not cope, could not or did not fulfill the promise – go out! Give place to others. In the best traditions of democratic societies.

 
However, the reader would ask a reasonable question: who will make the political players to execute clauses of the Election Agreement? Surely, to force negligent politicians to give way to others, we do not need special supervisory bodies, which will inevitably corrupted by deputies who do not want to go.

 
In this case, competing political forces and citizens themselves will be much more effective. If politicians do not fulfill the promise and deflect of course that they fixed by signing the Agreement, party rivals and citizens can and must make them face the fact: your time is up!

 
What is necessary to realize the idea? In my opinion, the main task is to develop a simple algorithmic structure of the Electoral Agreement. Clear schemes - how to formulate commitments in the Agreement; how political forces that won the election will have to execute them; and what will be responsible for the failure – are necessary.

 
Political parties themselves in order to be attractive to voters will have to develop an understandable text of the Agreement.

 
Deeds of parliamentarians must be explained to citizens not by motivated political scientists but by legal professionals who will clarify rights and obligations of parliamentarians.

 
Every voter should be able to compare the commitments made by politicians, know the state of their implementation and be aware of the responsibility bared by political players. And in the case of a default, act.

 
Summarizing, we can identify the steps to be taken. First, it is necessary to explain large-scale electoral benefits of the Electoral Agreement and its importance for the development of civil society in Ukraine. Second, the authoritative and responsive to the country's future lawyers should develop the form the essential conditions of the Election Agreement.

 
Third, appropriate changes should be amended to the electoral legislation of Ukraine. The Electoral Agreement becomes binding upon the candidates to deputies from the political forces that signed it.


Fourth, the threshold for political parties and blocs must be high enough, say, 10%.
Finally, it makes sense to reduce the number of deputies. Then the MPs, being in view, will finally be engaged in lawmaking, not blocking the work of the Parliament.


Putting such a legal institution as the Electoral Agreement into being will have only positive consequences for Ukraine, sharply increasing the effectiveness and efficiency of the Power.


Sergey Zhukov, head of lawyers’ company