SAPO head selection

The head of SAPO, his deputies, as well as the heads and deputy heads of departments, are chosen by the selection commission. It consists of seven individuals chosen by the Parliament, and four individuals chosen by the Council of Prosecutors of Ukraine (as of 2015, the Council of Prosecutors has not yet been formed, thus these individuals were selected by the Prosecutor General). According to the legislation, acting in 2015, the selection commission was to shortlist at least two candidates for the head of SAPO and forward the list to the Prosecutor General for a final decision. Later on the legislation was amended and as of now the selection commission would have to choose only one person per position and pass their decision to the Prosecutor General for approval.

Members of the selection commission must possess an unblemished reputation, high professional and moral qualities, be widely respected and have considerable experience in preventing and fighting against corruption. Neither civil servants, nor politicians can work in the selection commission. As a result, Ukrainian MPs, members of local councils, military personnel, law enforcement officers, as well as members of political parties could not be appointed to the commission.

As the General Prosecutors’ Office undergoes the reform starting autumn 2019, there is need to amend the procedure of SAPO head selection.

In 2020, the procedure of selection of new SAPO head started under the old procedure, raising the risk of politically controlled apppointment.