Voting on SAP: Verkhovna Rada with Zelenskyi’s approval takes step towards abolishing of visa-free travel and cooperation with IMF

Today, on September 17, on the third attempt the Verkhovna Rada voted on its representatives to the Selection Commission for the selection of the head of the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office. MPs voted by 239 votes for the candidates nominated by the Servants of the People, OPZZh, Dovira and For the Future: all of them do not comply with the law.

Prior to the vote, previous times and this time, the EU Ambassador expressed his reservations, recalling that a diligent commission for the selection of the head of the CAP is a condition of visa-free travel and EU macro-financial assistance in the amount of 1.5 billion euros. He was supported by the ambassadors of the G7. A number of influential MEPs have expressed their concern. Also, such a vote freezes cooperation with the International Monetary Fund, in particular, the next tranche of $ 1.6 billion.

All this did not become an argument for the Verkhovna Rada and the mono-majority. The Faction of the Servants of the People was supported by MP from apparently pro-Russian and pro-oligarchic Opposition Platform for Life and For the Future.

The nominees selected by the Rada have no experience in the field of anti-corruption, and they do not have an impeccable business reputation, high professional and moral qualities, and public authority. 5 out of 7 candidates had previously failed in a parliamentary vote. Nevertheless, the Servant of the People faction resubmitted the previously failed nominees. In order to find enough votes, 2 candidates from the group For the Future, which is controlled by oligarch Igor Kolomoisky, were added to the list.

“The fact that Zelensky’s faction, despite numerous warnings from international partners, delegated the same people who do not comply with the law, for the third time, shows that such a scenario was implemented at the request of the President’s Office. Thus, Zelenskyi is deliberately pushing the country to cooperate with pro-Russian forces and sever relations with the West. Today’s decision of the Parliament created a new pro-Russian coalition in the Rada, ”commented Vitaliy Shabunin, Head of the Board of the AntAC.

Who are the members of the Commission and why most of them do not meet the requirements of the Law please see below.

Servant of the People

Vyacheslav Navrotskyi is the Professor of the Department of Theory of Law and Human Rights at the Ukrainian Catholic University. He is the founder and head of NGO Lviv Forum of Criminal Justice and NGO Western Ukrainian Center for Reconciliation and Human Rights Consensus.

Both of the below nominees lack anti-corruption experience and have questionable integrity and, accordingly, high moral qualities and public authority.

Yevhen Sobol is the head of the Department of State Legal Disciplines and Administrative Law of Volodymyr Vynnychenko Central Ukrainian State Pedagogical University. In April 2019, he and his wife bought one-room apartment. The market value of apartment in the same area is about 100.000 USD.

Oleksiy Drozd works as the head of the Doctoral and Adjunct Department of the National Academy of Internal Affairs of Ukraine.

In his declaration, he indicates the purchase of the land plot with the total area of 0.24 hectares worth 49.594 UAH in the village Khotiv, Kyiv region, in 2017, although the market value of the land plot may be much higher. Also in 2018, his wife bought Volkswagen Golf (manufactured in 2015 ) worth 179.000 UAH. Today, the cost of the used car of the same brand ranges from 265.000 UAH to 415.000 UAH.

The nominee also indicated that he lives in an apartment that belongs to his father Drozd Yurii Vasyliovych, a former deputy chief of the Kirovohrad Regional Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and today a businessman in area fire safety.

Yuriy Drozd is currently a co-owner of APS-Kyiv LLC and APS-Kirovohrad LLC, which provide services for installing fire systems and servicing fire extinguishers. These companies win state tender. APS-Kyiv LLC received over 22 million UAH from the state, mostly in 2018 and 2019, signing contracts worth 7.1 UAH and 8 million UAH, respectively. APS Kirovohrad LLC received a total of over 8 million UAH from the state, the most in 2018 – over 3 million UAH. The other co-owners are the family of Oleksandr Adamovych, the former head of the Kirovohrad SES. Previously, he also owned a stake in Technogenya Bezpeka LLC, today he is only its head.

The below mentioned nominees do not comply with requirements set by law as well.

Opposition Platform for Life

Andriy Gudzhal has worked in the prosecutor’s office until 2019, and later he became the attorney. He is appealing against his dismissal from the prosecutor’s office in fall 2019, when cleaning of the prosecutor’s office began. He probably refused to pass certification or did not pass it.

The ex-prosecutor, who wants to select the head of the SAPO, obviously has problems with his declarations. In the declaration of 2016, he did not submit any housing in Kyiv or suburbs. Although, he started to work in the PGO in March 2016.

Since 2017 he has been submitting on the declaration the use of apartment in Sofiyivska Borshchagivka with the total area of 86 sq. m., owned by Gudzhal Nina Petrovna (probably his mother). At the same time, the ex-prosecutor did not specify the value as of the date of acquisition (as well as the date itself), and the value, according to the latest estimate, is 305,000 UAH, which is much lower than the market price of apartments in this residential complex.

Judging by declarations of Gudzhal Nina Petrovna in 2016 and in 2017, she did not have enough legal income to buy this apartment. She did not mention in her declaration that she was Member of Parliament of the local council in Vinnytsya region. Instead, she states that she is “retiree”, and tries to hide at least part of her declarations from undue attention. And there is something we should pay attention to. In 2016, she had pension in the amount of 24,000 UAH, and her monetary assets amounted to 20,000 USD.

Andriy Gudzhal stated in his autobiography that his wife is the laboratory assistant at Sinevo. In 2018, her income was about 7,000 UAH, in 2017 and 2016, it was about 10,000 UAH, and in 2015, it was 12,000 UAH. She submits ownership of 18,000 USD in cash in her last declaration with such income.

When Gudzhal submitted the car in declaration, he did not specify the model of his “Mazda” and significantly underestimated its value, indicating only 8.000 USD. Although, the price for the cheapest and smallest models is higher.

Dovira

Bogdan Romanyuk is the Associate Professor of Transport Law and Logistics of the National Transport University, Candidate of Law, Lieutenant General.

During 1977–1994 Romanyuk held senior positions in the central apparatus of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine: Deputy, First Deputy Head of the Main Investigation Department, First Deputy Head of the Main Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine. From 1994 to 1997 he was the head of the Regional Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in Lviv region. In 1997, he was sent to the Interdepartmental Scientific and Research Center for Combating Organized Crime under the Coordinating Committee for Combating Corruption and Organized Crime under the President of Ukraine (subordinated to the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine).

Bogdan Romanyuk is primarily connected with the detention of well-known serial maniac Onoprienko, the so-called “Bratkovets murderer”.

According to media reports, at one time Romanyuk was “asked” to resign the position of the head of Lviv police for alleged involvement in the beating of participants in mass actions of nationalist forces.

FortheFuture

Kateryna Koval has been the Deputy Chairman of the Union of Lawyers of Ukraine since 2007, while Sviatoslav Piskun is the Chairman of the Union. In 2010 she was a member of the Working Group on Judicial Reform, in accordance with Presidential Decree №440 / 2010 of 24.03.2010. This group also included Andriy Portnov and Olena Lukash.

In 2011, she indicated 23,000 UAH of income. At the same time, in the same year, she bought a new Hyundai Santa FE SUV for 326,000 UAH (14 annual incomes). In addition, she owned two other cars at the time: a KIA Seed and a Scoda Octavia (both of 2007).

Kateryna Koval was in support of the previous head of the KDAC Bachun and the head of the HACU Pasenyuk. She praised the “regional” Miroshnichenko.

Among the awards, Ms. Koval mentioned the commemorative medal “For Merits in Protecting the Rights and Freedoms of Citizens” of the Federal Bar Association of the Russian Federation for promoting international advocacy cooperation, and active participation in human rights activities (2012).

Olena Busol works as the head of the department at the Tavriya National University named after Vernadsky. In 2016, Olena Busol applied for the position of ARMA head, then for the deputy head of the SBI, but she failed the test.

Her husband, Anatoliy Busol, served in the bodies of Ministry of Internal affairs from 1984 to 2005. He is retired police lieutenant colonel. Since 2006 he has worked as the chief specialist of the personnel department of the State Judicial Administration of Ukraine.