"No threat to statehood." What the authorities and a former judge say about the shortage of judges of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine

Failure to appoint new judges to the Constitutional Court may lead to speculation about democratic processes in Ukraine, said Viktor Shyshkin, a judge of the Constitutional Court in 2006-2015. At the same time, Fedir Venislavsky, a member of parliament from the ruling Servant of the People faction, believes that there is "no threat to statehood" from the fact that this institution currently has a shortage of judges. The former official and politician said this in a comment to a detailed article by LIGA.net.

Shishkin noted that the president in Ukraine is not the guarantor of the Basic Law: "He is the guarantor of compliance with the Constitution, but this is not the same thing. The guarantor of the Constitution is the Constitutional Court of Ukraine."

The former judge noted that the failure to appoint new members of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine could cause speculation about democratic processes in Ukraine, and recalled that this is a violation of the constitutional order.

Without the Constitutional Court, it is impossible to amend the Fundamental Law or determine whether a particular regulatory act is constitutional: the head of state, the Cabinet of Ministers, and the Verkhovna Rada can only ask the Court about this.

Shishkin is convinced that many unconstitutional documents have been adopted in Ukraine recently: "For example, the draft law on multiple citizenship is unconstitutional in its content (There is another opinion on this. – Ed.). There are also questions about the agreement on subsoil – we will think about it."

At the same time, People's Deputy from the SN Venislavskyi told LIGA.net that there is "no threat to statehood."

"If laws are passed and someone finds them unconstitutional, this does not mean that the Constitutional Court of Ukraine will give some preventive conclusion: whether or not they should be passed. The Verkhovna Rada passes these laws, and only then interested parties turn to the Constitutional Court of Ukraine for verification. Therefore, I do not see any threats here," said a member of the National Security Committee.

At the same time, he clarified that vacant positions in the Court should be filled, especially in times of war. However, Venislavsky believes that currently, "the number of constitutional appeals and submissions is minimal."

• Currently, the Constitutional Court of Ukraine lacks a quorum – the institution is effectively paralyzed. Seven positions remain vacant: two candidates must be decided by the Congress of Judges of Ukraine, two more by the parliament, and the rest by the presidential quota.
• However, it is the Rada and the head of state who have not fulfilled their constitutional duty and have not appointed judges to the Constitutional Court for a long time, according to a detailed text by LIGA.net.