Putin’s PR Stunt

 As the prime minister, Vladimir Putin will follow a routine he has grown accustomed to during his tenure as president. He will once again deliver a report to the Parliament. Putin is scheduled to address the State Duma in early April, in order to explain what the government has done and what it will do to combat the crisis. But the Duma deputies are not too hyped about Putin’s upcoming report, in which he will ask for more powers to control the government.

A legislative novelty obliging the government to annually report to the Parliament was part of a package of constitutional amendments proposed by President Dmitry Medvedev back in November, along with extensions of the presidential and the State Duma terms. Putin’s speech, which will be comparable to a State of the Union presidential address, was devised as a tool in the mechanism of parliamentary control over the government. Apart from reporting the results of the government’s work in 2008, Putin will answer three questions posed by each of the Duma’s four factions.

These questions range from state support for high technologies amid the economic crisis and containment of the rising energy tariffs to changing trade regulations and making real estate affordable. The Communists are planning to complain about Russia’s high profile banks’ (VTB, Gazprombank and Sberbank) spending over $40 billion they received in state loans, meant to support the non-financial sector, to buy own shares and foreign currency. They will ask Putin whether he plans to get that money back.

The REGNUM news agency reported that the head of the Liberal Democratic Party faction in State Duma Igor Lebedev has expressed hope that Putin’s address would not be a “formality,” and the ministers would be held responsible for their failures. But the chances of this happening are not exactly high.

The State Duma, dominated by Putin’s United Russia party, has long since turned into a rubber stamp for the government, hardly ever challenging the bills put forth by the Kremlin and being, in Duma Speaker Boris Gryzlov’s own words, “no place for discussions.” Deputies from the three minor factions claim that they are barely (if at all) heard, and their counterparts from the ruling party agree. “The Parliament has no control whatsoever over the government; [the United Russia faction] has only a symbolic influence over the government, others have none at all,” said Gennady Gudkov, a State Duma deputy and a member of the Just Russia faction.

Parties with representation in the State Duma have to rely on other, less official mechanisms to exert influence on the government. “If anything can be done at all, it can only be done through personal meetings and agreements with the prime minister, who sometimes meets [State Duma factions]. The head of our party regularly meets with Putin and Medvedev, so we do have a chance to express our concerns. We’re not desperate about the situation because there is an opportunity for dialogue, but if we’re talking about it as a system, there is none,” said Gudkov.

Last week, Gryzlov said that Putin’s speech was scheduled for April 2, forcing the deputies to change their plans. Yet later, the date was unexpectedly moved back four days. After delivering his report, Putin will unveil the government’s anti-crisis measures.
Yet there is another side to this story. If delivered as scheduled, Putin’s speech would run simultaneously with Medvedev’s speech at the G20 summit in London, planned precisely for April 2. Medvedev is also scheduled to meet with United States President Barack Obama the day before. Both events are expected to dominate the news, and thus overshadow Putin’s performance in the State Duma. This would be a missed opportunity for the prime minister. Hence the date change.

Putin’s last two prime ministers, Mikhail Fradkov and Viktor Zubkov, were widely perceived as empty suites, having very little political weight and merely managing the day to day activities of the government. Things changed drastically with Putin’s arrival. Not only his persona, but also the economic downturn that Russia has experienced since last summer brought the government into the spotlight.

Many, including those in the expert circles, have lately begun doubting Putin’s anti-crisis policies. Public support for him and Medvedev is still strong, but both the president and the prime minister have lost a few points in the public approval ratings since the prospect of social unrest, albeit vague, appeared on the horizon. The United Russia party also hasn’t been doing as well in the regional elections as before.

Putin must now seize every opportunity to go public and maintain his image as a national leader, appearing in control of the situation and clarifying the government’s policies. “This is a PR event more than anything else,” said a deputy from the Communist Party Anatoly Lokot. “This is a big step forward in terms of control over the government, but I don’t see how there could be any responsibility until we can assess the results and make decisions on the government’s future work. As of now, we have no such powers,” said Lokot.

“Personally, I think our Parliament is not an independent governing body,” said Gudkov.

Vladimir Putin Will Talk and the Parliament Will Listen, but for Real, or for Show?

As the prime minister, Vladimir Putin will follow a routine he has grown accustomed to during his tenure as president. He will once again deliver a report to the Parliament. Putin is scheduled to address the State Duma in early April, in order to explain what the government has done and what it will do to combat the crisis. But the Duma deputies are not too hyped about Putin’s upcoming report, in which he will ask for more powers to control the government.

A legislative novelty obliging the government to annually report to the Parliament was part of a package of constitutional amendments proposed by President Dmitry Medvedev back in November, along with extensions of the presidential and the State Duma terms. Putin’s speech, which will be comparable to a State of the Union presidential address, was devised as a tool in the mechanism of parliamentary control over the government. Apart from reporting the results of the government’s work in 2008, Putin will answer three questions posed by each of the Duma’s four factions.

These questions range from state support for high technologies amid the economic crisis and containment of the rising energy tariffs to changing trade regulations and making real estate affordable. The Communists are planning to complain about Russia’s high profile banks’ (VTB, Gazprombank and Sberbank) spending over $40 billion they received in state loans, meant to support the non-financial sector, to buy own shares and foreign currency. They will ask Putin whether he plans to get that money back.

The REGNUM news agency reported that the head of the Liberal Democratic Party faction in State Duma Igor Lebedev has expressed hope that Putin’s address would not be a “formality,” and the ministers would be held responsible for their failures. But the chances of this happening are not exactly high.

The State Duma, dominated by Putin’s United Russia party, has long since turned into a rubber stamp for the government, hardly ever challenging the bills put forth by the Kremlin and being, in Duma Speaker Boris Gryzlov’s own words, “no place for discussions.” Deputies from the three minor factions claim that they are barely (if at all) heard, and their counterparts from the ruling party agree. “The Parliament has no control whatsoever over the government; [the United Russia faction] has only a symbolic influence over the government, others have none at all,” said Gennady Gudkov, a State Duma deputy and a member of the Just Russia faction.

Parties with representation in the State Duma have to rely on other, less official mechanisms to exert influence on the government. “If anything can be done at all, it can only be done through personal meetings and agreements with the prime minister, who sometimes meets [State Duma factions]. The head of our party regularly meets with Putin and Medvedev, so we do have a chance to express our concerns. We’re not desperate about the situation because there is an opportunity for dialogue, but if we’re talking about it as a system, there is none,” said Gudkov.

Last week, Gryzlov said that Putin’s speech was scheduled for April 2, forcing the deputies to change their plans. Yet later, the date was unexpectedly moved back four days. After delivering his report, Putin will unveil the government’s anti-crisis measures.
Yet there is another side to this story. If delivered as scheduled, Putin’s speech would run simultaneously with Medvedev’s speech at the G20 summit in London, planned precisely for April 2. Medvedev is also scheduled to meet with United States President Barack Obama the day before. Both events are expected to dominate the news, and thus overshadow Putin’s performance in the State Duma. This would be a missed opportunity for the prime minister. Hence the date change.

Putin’s last two prime ministers, Mikhail Fradkov and Viktor Zubkov, were widely perceived as empty suites, having very little political weight and merely managing the day to day activities of the government. Things changed drastically with Putin’s arrival. Not only his persona, but also the economic downturn that Russia has experienced since last summer brought the government into the spotlight.

Many, including those in the expert circles, have lately begun doubting Putin’s anti-crisis policies. Public support for him and Medvedev is still strong, but both the president and the prime minister have lost a few points in the public approval ratings since the prospect of social unrest, albeit vague, appeared on the horizon. The United Russia party also hasn’t been doing as well in the regional elections as before.

Putin must now seize every opportunity to go public and maintain his image as a national leader, appearing in control of the situation and clarifying the government’s policies. “This is a PR event more than anything else,” said a deputy from the Communist Party Anatoly Lokot. “This is a big step forward in terms of control over the government, but I don’t see how there could be any responsibility until we can assess the results and make decisions on the government’s future work. As of now, we have no such powers,” said Lokot.

“Personally, I think our Parliament is not an independent governing body,” said Gudkov.