Grytsenko needs to unite with allies for campaign, Baloha says

Viktor Baloha, previously identified by the
pravda.com.ua news site as the campaign manager for presidential contender
Anatoliy Grytsenko, insists that he is not campaign manager despite attending council
meetings and regularly meeting with Grytsenko, the same website reported in an
interview published on Oct. 1. Grytsenko’s candidacy is “a waste of time and
money” if he doesn’t unite with other politicians, Baloha said, naming Lviv
Mayor Andriy Sadovyi  and rock star Sviatoslav Vakarchuk. Negotiations are
taking place between these individuals, Baloha said, adding that he is not
involved. “Once these three politicians get together and say, ‘We need to
change the country for the better. We have an understanding and outlook,’ the
whole country will join this pro-Ukrainian project,” said Baloha, who added he
won’t serve as campaign manager.

Zenon Zawada: We agree fully with Baloha’s assessment that Grytsenko doesn’t have a
chance to compete against Tymoshenko or Poroshenko without a formidable
political team. Recent polls show he is already losing his second place
standing that he held consistently during the summer. We don’t expect “the
whole country” to support  a possible Grytsenko-Sadovyi-Vakarchuk project,
but it can better compete for the presidency and certainly qualify for
parliament. It also helps that Baloha, a man associated with the Ukrainian
oligarchy, will remain behind the scenes, without any formal position.