The NABU Ex-Director named the most high-profile cases that outraged corruption-tolerant political elites.
At the stage of formation of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau there was no pressure on the body, but everything changed after the beginning of its work, summing up its cadence, stated NABU ex-director Artem Sitnik. He also reminded that instead of the bill on the simplified procedure for dismissal of the NABU director, a draft law on the Supreme Anti-Corruption Court appeared.
“We did not feel resistance as such at the stage of institution formation. However, that changed after we launched the investigation. We registered the first proceedings on December 4, 2015, shortly after the appointment of Nazar Kholodnytsky as the head of the SAP. Feelings when we have already started investigating Martynenko's case , – then the elites began to doubt that “something is wrong with NABU.” And when it came to lifting the parliamentary immunity of Oleksandr Onyschenko and bringing him to justice for corruption (summer 2016 – note), since then we have actually started to be taken seriously as a threat, “Sytnyk said.
He added that there have always been corruption cases in Ukraine, but they concerned either ex-officials or current ones, but not the highest level. At the same time, the highest environment has always been inviolable. This is what distinguishes NABU from other bodies – it investigates corruption crimes of top officials.
“And when we started investigating real cases, the elite got scared. And attempts began to “tame” NABU, to establish political control. Perhaps the most critical moment was when in 2017 we investigated the so-called case of Avakov's backpacks (People's name of criminal proceedings due to probable involvement in the corruption scheme of one of the close relatives of the Minister of Internal Affairs – note) “, – added Sytnyk.
He reminded that then two leaders of the Popular Front and Petro Poroshenko Bloc factions registered a bill that simplified the procedure for dismissal of the NABU director. Sitnik himself was in Washington at the time, where he met with the president of the World Bank and the head of the International Monetary Fund. According to the NABU ex-director, then he thought it was over.
“But international partners then chose a very tough position and defended NABU. And instead of the bill on my dismissal, there was a bill on the anti-corruption court. From the beginning, President Poroshenko was against this idea. However, later he changed his rhetoric dramatically, “Sytnyk said.
However, according to him, time was still lost. Because the cases investigated by NABU were dusted in the courts of general jurisdiction, they did not want to hear them. At the same time, the emergence of the High Anti-Corruption Court has shown how different justice can be built.
“And we have already seen that every week – at least one real sentence was passed before the war. Only judges who received real sentences for corruption in the Anti-Corruption Court, more than in all 30 years of Ukraine's independence . Therefore, on the one hand, unfortunately, we lost time on the establishment of the Anti-Corruption Court, on the other – thank God that he is, that he works and works according to completely different standards of justice, “Sytnyk added.
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< span style = "font-weight: 400;">It will be recalled that Artem Sytnyk's seven-year term in office ended on April 16. Acting Director of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau Gizo Uglava .
According to our source in the Cabinet, in Bankova before the appointment of the Head of the Acting NABU was left with options to neutralize it as the right hand of the long-unwanted Sitnik. Why is the UACC here and why did one of the candidates for Sitnik's place take the lawsuit there? Is it only because of the war that the Cabinet of Ministers is holding a competition for the director of NABU in a frozen state? Will the NABU staff withstand the intervention of “others” and why is the future head of the SAP so important for the work of the anti-corruption bloc? Answers, as well as an interview with a NABU detective, who talks about what the anti-corruption bloc expects from the government to help it not lose the country of corruption – in the text Inna Vedernikova “ NABU test. Is Zelensky ready to open a second front against corruption? ».
