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EDITOR IN CHIEF- ABDULLAH BIN SALIM AL SHUEILI

Ukrainian comedian laughs all the way to the ballot box

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Olga SHYLENKO and Theo MERZ -


Volodymyr Zelensky has already been elected president of Ukraine — in the popular TV show “Servant of the People”, the third season of which began airing last week. His rise is strikingly similar to that of his character in the hit series.


The 41-year-old comedian’s real presidential bid started out as a long shot but, on the back of popular discontent with the political class, he has leapt to pole position.


Zelensky’s critics brand him a puppet of powerful rivals to Ukraine’s current president, Petro Poroshenko.


After taking a strong lead in a first-round vote at the weekend he will face the incumbent in a run-off on April 21.


In the TV show, a school history teacher is elected leader after a video rant against corruption goes viral.


While supporters see the real-life Zelensky as a breath of fresh air, critics say his manifesto is vague and that a country at war should not be taking a chance on a political novice.


The entertainer, who has earned comparisons to US actor-turned-president Ronald Reagan, shuns campaign rallies in favour of comedy gigs. He prefers to get his message across through videos on social media rather than press interviews.


“For him personally, this is an interesting life experience, something he hasn’t done before,” Ukrainian political analyst Mykola Davydyuk said of Zelensky’s approach to the campaign.


“I’m not ruling out that he does have some burning desire to be president but, most likely, he’s unconsciously acting out the role he’s played on the screen,” Davydyuk said.


“And there is a section of the population who believe him and are willing to vote for him.”


In his comedy shows, which continued up to the very last day of the campaign going into the first round, the line between candidate and showman has been blurred.


At a recent gig in the outskirts of Kiev, he took aim at Poroshenko — despite stressing the performance was not a campaign event.


“Why is Poroshenko going for a second term? So that he doesn’t get a first,” Zelensky said, with the implication of a jail term for a leader who has been accused of corruption.


“That’s not funny,” his on-stage partner replied.


“Well, it wasn’t a joke,” Zelensky said.


Zelensky has been accused of being a “puppet” for Ukrainian oligarch Igor Kolomoysky, but he denies any political connection.


Kolomoysky, one of Ukraine’s richest and most controversial figures, became a regional governor at the start of Poroshenko’s term but was forced to resign following a row over a state oil firm. — AFP


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