Gaidar Faction Criticizes Poll Delay

Russia's Choice, the parliamentary faction closest to President Boris Yeltsin, on Friday came out against a proposal to put back parliamentary elections for two years.The statement, signed by the group's leader, former prime minister Yegor Gaidar, conceded that two years was an "insufficient period to allow parliament to get on its feet." But it said that putting off the elections would "destroy the weak shoots of civic accord, the trust between different political forces and respect for the principles of legality which have appeared in our society in recent times."Russia's Choice rejects the idea of prolonging the powers of the Federal Assembly and insists that parliamentary and presidential elections should be held at the dates determined by the constitution," it concluded.The speaker of the upper house of parliament, Vladimir Shumeiko, broached the idea of putting back the parliamentary polls, due in 1995, on Tuesday. He also said that Yeltsin should stay on in office, implying that he backed a postponement of presidential elections due in 1996.The proposal, which would radically redraw the political map of Russia, has split the democratic camp. Two of Yeltsin's most hardline advisers, Gennady Burbulis and Mikhail Poltoranin, and radical reformer Gleb Yakunin have supported the idea. Yeltsin's Press Secretary Vyacheslav Kostikov said the proposal was "interesting but open to debate," Segodnya reported Friday.Others have called the plan undemocratic and unethical. Yeltsin's Chief of Staff Sergei Filatov said Shumeiko's proposal had been "unexpected news," Itar-Tass reported Thursday.Putting off the elections would require a change in the constitution. That would need the support of two-thirds of the State Duma and three-quarters of the Federation Council, something virtually impossible given the widespread opposition to the idea.It would also break the Pact on Social Accord, the domestic peace pact which Yeltsin and a wide range of political leaders signed in April.