Constantine Tolkatchev about the XI congress of “United Russia” and legislative system RB

The secretary of “United Russia” regional division, chairman of State Council RB Constantine Tolkatchev answered the questions of journalists concerning the XI congress of “United Russia”. The text of the interview is given shortly below:

- Dear Constantine Borisovitch, the XI congress of “United Russia” has taken place on November 21 and the main theme of the discussion was the party’s activity for the next ten years. What are your impressions of the congress and how the decisions of the party forum will affect the activity of the party’s Bashkir division?

- The last congress has considered the most actual tasks for the country and wide representation was one of its main peculiarities. More than 600 delegates and about two thousand guests participated in the forum’s work. The program, announced by Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and the party leader Vladimir Putin discloses real situation, observed in our economics and other spheres of our society. The program determines the prior tasks concerning the fastest way out of the crisis, removal of its after-effects and modernization of Russian economics. The participants of the congress have agreed with the argument concerning positive influence of conservatism upon the processes of modernization and innovation. The program gives strict definition to that set of the principles, laid in the basis of the program and called “Russian conservatism”.

- How do you estimate the proposals of Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on modernization of the party system?

- These proposals come quite in time and it is quite right that the party should become more dynamical and more able to make adequate decisions. The main task of the party now is to become maximally close to Russian population and its problems. At present time practically all layers of Russian society are widely introduced in the party structure. Nonetheless if the party wants to remain the ruling party in the future too, it should maintain the permanent feedback with the whole population.

- Can be the second re-election of President RB Murtaza Rakhimov into the staff of “United Russia” Supreme Council regarded as the recognition of social-economic stability in your Republic?

- I’d like to underscore that President RB was elected into the Supreme Council of “United Russia” several times, from the very beginning of the party’s appearance. It is quite naturally because our President stood near the springs of the party, playing important role in elaboration of all party documents. His role in elaboration of the normative acts, regulating the activity of the party, is great.

- Some days ago Russian mass-media started to ventilate the information about the initiative of “Fair Russia”, which introduced the draft bill about regulation of the number of parliamentarians in Russian regions. According to the draft bill the number of parliamentarians in the regions should be directly connected with the population in these regions. Admittedly in such regions as Republic of Bashkortostan the number of parliamentarians has to be reduced to 75, but working on a permanent base. What is your attitude to this initiative?

- “In accordance with the article 77 of Russian Constitution the creation of the state structure and the authority system is considered the prerogative of Russian regions and all that is done in accordance with the constitutional and federal laws, regulating organization and principles of activity of executive power boards. If the federal center takes this function on itself, it will hardly be wise and reasonable because regional authorities are more informed about local situation as a rule and I think that for the regions with large territories the shortening of the deputy corps can’t be called expedient and this is the first point. The second point is that the parliament of our Republic permanently works over the reduction of the deputy work’s expenses and as we know only 16 deputies in Bashkir parliament work on a permanent basis, though not long ago this number was 40,30 and at last 25. I think at present time Bashkortostan possesses the optimal system of legislation, completely corresponding to the tasks the Republican parliament faces now and this system proves to be quite efficient and I don’t believe there is the real necessity to alter the active legislation” – Constantine Tolkatchev answered.