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Lawmaker: Oligarchs trying to remove Ukraine’s president to gain full control over country

The leader of the Petro Poroshenko Bloc says such scenario of the country’s development is destructive for "the dream of EU" because "Ukraine will be either European or oligarchic"
Leader of the Petro Poroshenko Bloc parliamentary faction Yury Lutsenko ITAR-TASS/Mikhail Palinchak
Leader of the Petro Poroshenko Bloc parliamentary faction Yury Lutsenko
© ITAR-TASS/Mikhail Palinchak

KIEV, November 2. /TASS/. Ukrainian oligarchs are making attempts to change power in the country and remove the president to establish full control over Ukraine, leader of the Petro Poroshenko Bloc parliamentary faction Yury Lutsenko said on Monday.

"The budget fell short of 9.6 billion [hryvnias] from Ukrnafta [controlled by Ihor Kolomoyskyi]. The same goes for DTEK [Rinat Akhmetov’s business group] or DF Group [belongs to Dmitry Firtash]. Oligarchs don’t like this. They push their supporters’ buttons. Masters put forward a task — to dismiss the parliament and elect a new one that will be subordinate to them. The best option is to get rid of the president’s post or to elect him in the parliament," Lutsenko wrote on his Facebook page.

The lawmaker says such scenario of the country’s development is destructive for "the dream of EU" because "Ukraine will be either European or oligarchic". He also stressed that it is possible to stop oligarchs only with popular support. In order to win people’s support, "old and new embezzlers of state funds should be punished" against the backdrop of "pro-European reforms", he added.

Lutsenko said the arrest of Gennady Korban, whom local media described as Ihor Kolomoyskyi’s "right hand", is also connected with fight against oligarchy. "The detention of Korban was destined to happen," the lawmaker noted.

UKROP party leader Gennady Korban was detained on October 31. Prosecutors suspect him of establishing a criminal organization that used charity funds for other aims and carried out other illegal activities. The founder of the party Igor Kolomoyskyi told the "Levy Bereg" (Left Bank) media that "Korban’s case is pure politics" and that it is directly linked with the results that the party demonstrated at local election.