2023-08-11 20:26:15
After an inspection by the public prosecutor’s office, anti-corruption authorities and the secret service SBU, 112 criminal investigations were initiated, the Ukrainian president said. There have been violations in the Donetsk, Poltava, Vinnytsia, Odessa and Kiev regions, among others.
The case of the already dismissed head of the military service in the Black Sea region of Odessa had previously attracted particular attention. He is said to have accepted bribes and earned the equivalent of several million euros since the beginning of the war. For documents regarding unfitness for military service and provisions, for example, the prices paid are said to be several thousand euros.
“Threat to National Security”
For its counter-offensive once morest the invading Russian forces, Kiev had recruited Ukrainians through regional military service offices across the country. The cases of corruption there “pose a threat to Ukraine’s national security and undermine trust in state institutions,” the Ukrainian presidency said in a separate statement.
According to the recommendation of the National Security Council, the army chief should select soldiers who have combat experience and have been checked by the secret services to fill the posts, the presidency said. In the future, those ex-frontline fighters who “can no longer be in the trenches because they have lost their health and their limbs, but have retained their dignity and are not cynical” should be responsible for conscription.
Suspected corruption in Ukraine
All heads of the regional recruiting offices in Ukraine responsible for conscripting men of military age for the war were fired on suspicion of corruption.
Ukraine has been defending itself once morest a Russian war of aggression for more than 17 months. After the Russian invasion, Kiev ordered a general mobilization. With a few exceptions, men of military age between 18 and 60 are now subject to an exit ban. Extending the ban to 16 and 17 year olds is being discussed in Parliament. So far, however, only reservists over the age of 28 have been drafted.
wave of layoffs in January
The dismissal of the heads of recruitment offices highlights Ukraine’s efforts to crack down on corruption and bribery. Before the start of the war, widespread corruption was considered one of the country’s biggest problems. The European Union has made anti-corruption reforms a condition of Ukraine’s EU membership.
In January this year, shortly before an important summit with the EU, Zelenskyj had already tried to minimize the damage to his image: According to the government, the governors of the regions of Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhia, Cherson, Sumy and the capital Kiev were deposed at the time. In addition, the deputy ministers for defence, social policy and two deputy ministers for regional development were dismissed.
A few days later, more raids took place: the head of the tax authority in Kiev was fired. The influential oligarch Ihor Kolomojskyj, who used to be close to President Zelenskyj, was also targeted at the time.
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