Russia today elects a president for country facing crisis

RUSSIA's voters go to the polls today to elect a president whose powers are greater than those of any western political leader, but the winner will he faced with the task of ruling a country which faces crisis.

Ominously both President Yeltsin and his communist rival, Mr Gennady Zyuganov, in the course of their campaigns, have made promises involving massive government spending which could boost inflation in a vulnerable economy.

In 1992 when price controls were lifted inflation hit 2,500 per cent. Since then the rouble has stabilised and inflation has been brought down to less than 2 per cent per month under the premiership of Mr Viktor Chernomyrdin. And the country's vast resources have been responsible for an increase in exports. But there are economic and political storm clouds on the horizon Forty per cent of the country's projected tax revenues are evaded by a business class which includes a large criminal element unemployment is rising towards an official 9 per cent, with many of the officially employed on short time and unpaid. The banking sector is in crisis and industrial production is falling.

Against this background both candidates have appealed to the emotions of the electorate rather than to the hard economic facts.

Mr Yeltsin has from the outset, with the help of a compliant media, successfully eliminated democratic opponents to paint a picture of himself as the only defender of reforms against a return of communist power.

Mr Zyuganov has played on the despair of a large section of the electorate which has seen its standard of living fall, while watching the select few achieve a standard of living and wealth which would be familiar to the glitziest residents of Hollywood, California.

Both candidates have promised more than they can afford. Mr Zyuganov has opted for the printing of money to spend his way out of trouble, while Mr Yeltsin, having sequestered $1 billion from the Central Bank's reserve fund, has made promises across the board ranging from payment of back wages to the establishment of underground railways in some of Russia's smaller cities.

The winning candidate, likely Mr Yeltsin, will have power to rule by decree, minimal checks and balances by the two houses of parliament.

The president names the prime minister, who must then be ratified by the Duma (lower house). If the Duma rejects the president's nominee three times, he can then dissolve parliament. He can also veto parliamentary legislation. There is provision for the president's impeachment, but the procedures are so complicated as to make impeachment virtually impossible.

Against this background Mr Yeltsin's security chief, Gen Alexander Lebed, yesterday demanded more powers for himself, saying they were needed to combat crime, establish law and order and bring economic stability.

He reiterated his plan to make it more difficult for foreigners to enter Russia which already has one of the strictest visa regimes in Europe and to rank foreign countries according to their friendship with the Russian Federation. Gen Lebed has also called for the restoration of the vice presidency. With Mr Yeltsin's health still extremely questionable, the general could, if he gets his way, quickly take over the vast presidential powers.

In a recent interview with the German magazine Der Spiegel he was asked if he would become president in the year 2000 when the next elections are due. He replied "Perhaps before that."

. A Kremlin spokesman yesterday evening denied rumours that Mr Yeltsin had died. "I can officially say that President Yeltsin is alive," the spokesman said. "We can link this type of rumour to financial games or market speculation."