Constitutional Court special session ignores presidential decree

The Jan. 5 special session of the Constitutional Court
didn’t address the president’s decree to place on two months’ leave its chief justice,
Oleksandr Tupytskiy, judge Ihor Slidenko told the 5 Kanal television network.
The president’s decree is legal but at the same time, there is no legal basis
for removing Tupytskiy, who remains active but was not at the court that
morning, Slidenko said.

In the same interview, Slidenko said the Zelensky
administration is continuing to pressure him and he plans to leave Ukraine. “I
am waiting for my dismissal. My request is lying on the table,” he said.
Slidenko served as the court’s speaker in the scandalous Oct. 27 ruling that
disrupted Ukraine’s IMF-sponsored anti-corruption infrastructure.

Zenon Zawada: The
Constitutional Court is continuing to undermine the president’s authority,
which we view as an intentional political campaign sponsored by Ukraine’s
pro-Russian forces. Meanwhile, Zelensky is falling into their trap by continuing to indicate that he is
seeking to replace the court altogether, which is a proposal rejected by
European authorities. It’s hard to see how this conflict is resolved without
the intervention of a third party.