Dmitruk – on the way out? Will the people’s deputy be excluded from “Servants of the people” after resentment against Zelensky

People’s Deputy from “Servants of the people” Artem Dmitruk increasingly runs counter to colleagues in the parliamentary faction. Site “Today” recalled the deputy’s recent conflicts with party members and tried to find out if he was in danger of being expelled from the pro-presidential political force.

Who is Artem Dmitruk

In the 2019 parliamentary elections, Artem Dmitruk won the single-mandate constituency No. 133 (Odessa region), gaining 32.66% of the vote. In the Verkhovna Rada of the IX convocation, the People’s Deputy became a member of the Committee on Law Enforcement Activities and became a member of several groups for inter-parliamentary relations. As of the end of September this year, Dmitruk took part in the creation of 36 bills.

At first, Dmitruk supported “party politics” at the local level and in the Rada. Sometimes he even forcibly defended the point of view of the mono-majority, for example, having a scuffle in the parliamentary hall with the people’s deputy “Batkivshchyna” Sergei Vlasenko because of the bill on the land market.

But recently, the deputy began to increasingly oppose the initiatives “Servants of the people”while telling the public the secrets “internal kitchen” party.

In particular, Dmitruk:

• did not support colleagues in the faction and voted against resignation of the speaker of the Rada Dmitry Razumkov;
• abstained from voting for appointment vice speaker of parliament, people’s deputy and head of the party “Servant of the people” Alexandra Kornienko;
• voted against the bill to legalize medical cannabis, despite the fact that the first deputy chairman “servants” in parliament, Alexander Kornienko predicted 200 factional votes in support of the bill.
• spoke ambiguously on the topic of treason charges MP Viktor Medvedchukassuming that if the suspicion turns out to be false, the perpetrators should be punished.
• commenting on the statement scandal talk show host “Countdown” Miroslava Barchukthat the Office of the President has pressure on the media and controls the speeches on the air of the people’s deputies “Servants of the people”, told reporters that members of the presidential faction received “temniki” with recommendations on what to say publicly and what to keep silent about.
• criticized the decision of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine to help Moldova with gas.

The faction threatened “personal communication”

Faction leader “Servant of the people” David Arahamia said that with those deputies “Servants of the people”who did not vote on October 7 for the resignation of the Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada Dmitry Razumkov, will “separate personal communication”.

“There will be communication with each deputy separately. Separate destiny for everyone”– said Arahamia.

And already on October 19 People’s Deputy Ludmila Buimisterwho also voted against the resignation of Razumkov was excluded from faction “Servants of the people”… In addition to disagreement with the SN’s position on Razumkov, the mono-majority was also displeased by its vote against the law on oligarchs and frequent criticism of the authorities.

Why are people’s deputies excluded

Political scientist Ruslan Bortnik believes that the faction “Servant of the people” forced to clean up cadres primarily for the sake of discipline among party members.

“Without strict discipline, MPs will start voting the way they want. Expulsion from the party is a demonstrative punishment for disobedience and intimidation of party members. After all, every people’s deputy understands that if he is expelled next, he will lose access to funding and great opportunities.”, – is talking “Today” political scientist.

At the same time, Bortnik notes that they exclude a few, although they disagree with the opinion of the majority in the faction, at least two dozen deputies.

“Everyone will not be expelled. First of all, those who behave extremely defiantly and in public are punished. This is how Artem Dmitruk has been behaving lately. I fully admit that he will be next “to the exit”, – the expert tells us.

Agrees with him political scientist Alexey Yakubin.

“The key point of the exclusion of deputies from “Servants of the people” – their own position, which is at odds with the opinion of the mono-majority. Those who criticize the government too actively are excluded”, – is talking “Today” Yakubin.

The political scientist added that the cleansing of cadres in the faction is not too widespread.

“There is also a coordination moment in the exclusions from the faction. It is difficult to manage 226 deputies. You have to influence them with the threat of exclusion. Fear of being banished from “Servants of the people” motivates many MPs to be obedient”, – explains Yakubin.

What they say in “Servants of the people”

As told “Today” People’s Deputy “Servants of the people” Alexey Ustenko, deputies who regularly did not support the party’s decisions were expelled from the faction.

“We have a rule “70 to 30″… If 70% of the faction’s deputies decide to vote “for”, then the remaining 30% should support them. Only in this way can there be solidity, otherwise everything will crumble like a house of cards. Those who refused to adhere to this principle and constantly disagreed with the opinion of the faction, in fact, were the ones who were excluded”, – Ustenko tells us.

According to him, at this time, candidates for the exit from “Servants of the people” no.

“The question of expelling any of the deputies is not being discussed now. There are no clear signals for this”, – Ustenko emphasized.

Why Dmitruk went against the party

As noted by Bortnik, Dmitruk’s relationship with the pro-presidential party soured after the election of the mayor of Odessa in November 2020. For a long time, the office of the president could not decide on a candidate from “Servants of the people” for the post of Odessa mayor. Artem Dmitruk was allegedly considered among the candidates. At one time he was even considered the favorite of the election race. However, the situation changed after the president decided to nominate for mayor of Odessa from “Servants of the people” famous showman Oleg Filimonov.

“Dmitruk reacted very painfully to the unpleasant news from Bankova. He also hoped that if he lost, he would be made the main representative. “Servants of the people” in Odessa, but this did not happen. Then between Zelensky and Dmitruk “a black cat ran”, – Bortnik tells us.

The political scientist also noted that when Vladimir Zelensky represented Oleg Filimonov in Odessa, Dmitruk did not come and was the only Odessa people’s deputy from “Servants of the people”who ignored the event.

What will happen if Dmitruk is expelled from “Servants of the people”

Political analyst Yakubin suggests that Dmitruk is ready to be expelled from the faction.

“Rating “Servants of the people” falls. Many deputies of the mono-majority are already thinking about their future careers. To this end, they are already trying to create a political name for themselves. I think Dmitruk also hopes that personal recognition will play a plus for him in future elections. Today, by actively criticizing the authorities and resonant statements, he increases his political capital, thereby preparing the ground for his future political project.”, – summed up Yakubin.

Site “Today” tried to contact Artem Dmitruk… Unfortunately, at the time of the preparation of the material, the people’s deputy’s phone was turned off, and our questions on the social network were not read. If Dmitruk answers after the publication, we will also publish his comment on this matter.

Who has already been excluded from “Servants of the people”

Previous site “Today” reported that “Servants of the people” goes on staff shortage, which began back in 2019. People in the team President Volodymyr Zelensky, who came to power with him, is getting smaller.