Ukraine: realities | «The Weekly Five»: 30.10 – 05.11

U.S. Ambassador: There is corruption in Ukraine, but it does not affect military aid from the U.S.

In the U.S., it is acknowledged that there is an issue of corruption in Ukraine; however, it does not impact American military assistance—it is used for its intended purpose. This statement was made by U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink on Fox News.

«There is a long history of corruption in Ukraine, and honestly, in the entire region. It's a problem of Soviet heritage that affects many countries», said Brink, adding, «the Russian aggressive war in Ukraine has truly changed the societal attitude towards corruption; it is no longer tolerated. This is one of the reasons why we see and hear about it. And I think that's a good thing».

She also mentioned that no part of the military equipment has been used for purposes other than intended.

 

What property of Kolomoisky was seized after his detention: court releases decision

After the announcement of suspicions of fraud and money laundering on September 2nd against Igor Kolomoisky, the court, upon the request of the Economic Security Bureau detective, imposed a freeze on shares of the suspect in 12 companies. This information became known from the published ruling of the Kyiv Court of Appeals in the Unified Register of Court Decisions.

In particular, the following were subject to seizure:

• 100% of shares in "Poltavaoblenergo"
• 50% of LLC "Kinoteatr Valentina"
• 33.4% of LLC "Alfa-Privat, LTD"
• 30% of LLC "Pass LTD"
• 20% of LLC "Commercial Agency 'Vist LTD'"
• 33.4% of LLC "Beta-K, LTD"
• 9% of LLC "Proton-21"
• 25% of LLC "Starlight"
• 25% of LLC "Farles"
• 19.6% of LLC "Solm LTD"
• 9% of LLC "Football Club Dnipro"
• 19.6% of LLC "Sentoza LTD."

 

Igor Palytsia receives money from tender schemes

Renowned Ukrainian investigative journalist Yuriy Nikolov, who exposed corrupt scandals involving the procurement of eggs at 17 hryvnias each for the Ministry of Defense and winter jackets for soldiers, has turned his attention to the activities of the Lutsk City Council led by Igor Polishchuk.

This summer, the city council announced a tender for the repair of Druzhby Narodiv Boulevard near the Lutsk Plant. Two companies competed for this contract, but the city administration did everything to ensure that the desired participant won, diverting funds from the pockets of Lutsk taxpayers to the entourage of MP Igor Palitsya.

This information  comes from journalist Yuriy Nikolov, as reported by the publication "Nashi Groshi" ("Our Money").

«At the tender for the repair of one of the streets in the residential area of Lutsk, two local heavyweights clashed with a bid of 50 million hryvnias. The company 'Lutskavtodorservis,' associated with the former head of the Road Service in Volyn Oblast Yurii Olkhovyi, and 'Volindorbud' from the Ihavhiv-Palitsa circle. These companies have been taking apart almost all local contracts in recent years. The 'Lutsk' company often allowed itself to win against the 'Volynians' by offering a significant discount. But this time, 'Lutskavtodor' made a 15% discount on the 50 million hryvnias tender, resulting in a loss of 6 million hryvnias in margin», notes the journalist on his Facebook page.

Yuriy also adds that the Lutsk City Hall simply canceled the tender "due to expenditure reduction" for the boulevard repair. However, within a few minutes, they announced a new procurement for the same repair, again priced at 50 million hryvnias.

Who is «Volindorbud»?

According to the Ukrainian publication Censor.NET, LLC "Volindorbud" was registered in Kovel in 2019. Local media associate the company with entrepreneur Stepan Ihavhiv, the owner of the "Kontinium" group, which controls the WOG gas station network, and with the younger partner of Igor Kolomoisky - Igor Palitsa. In 2021 and 2022, the company was one of the leaders in utilizing funds for the construction and repairs of roads in Volyn Oblast, although at that time, it did not have its own equipment for such contracts. The firm rented equipment from relatives and friends of Igor Palitsa. The official founders of "Volindorbud" are Ruslan Kurylo and Yuriy Romanko.

Full version of this article you can read here .

 

Issues with advance payments. NACP identifies corruption risks in the Ministry of Defense procurements

The National Agency for Prevention of Corruption (NACP) has identified a range of risks contributing to corrupt practices in the procurement of goods, works, and services for defense purposes. Recommendations aimed at eliminating these risks have been developed for the Ministry of Defense, as stated in the NACP press release.

It was noted that among the main reasons for the prevalence of corruption in the Ministry of Defense procurements is the lack of effective control over the targeted use of budget funds by suppliers received as advance payments.

According to the NACP, most suppliers to the Ministry of Defense receive advance payments into accounts opened in commercial banks. Therefore, there is a risk of using these funds contrary to their intended purpose (placement in deposit accounts, fulfilling their own obligations under other contracts, providing financial assistance to related legal entities).

The National Agency has made recommendations to the Ministry of Defense for risk mitigation.

Specifically, the ministry is advised to transfer advance payments to non-budgetary accounts of suppliers opened in the State Treasury Service. These funds can then be used exclusively for purposes defined by contract terms, and the Treasury Service will be provided with supporting documents for payment processing.

 

MP Dubinsky served with suspicion of organizing a scheme for «dodgers»

The Security Service of Ukraine, in collaboration with the State Bureau of Investigations, has served suspicion to the Member of Parliament Oleksandr Dubinsky, who, according to the investigation, organized a scheme for the illegal departure of conscripts abroad.

Law enforcement authorities do not disclose the name of the suspect, but Dubinsky himself confirmed in the evening of November 3rd that he had been served with suspicion.

According to the investigation, the deputy illegally transported his wife's brother to Moldova. To organize the scheme of illegal departure of men abroad, the parliamentarian used the under-controlled public organization «Mediaoborona», law enforcement officials note. Through it, he introduced "necessary individuals" into the «Shlyakh» system, allegedly as volunteers.

As established by the SBU, the MP kept some of the necessary documents for the departure of his wife's brother abroad with his economic assistant—a deputy of the Kyiv Regional Council of the 8th convocation, and also with the director of the under-controlled public organization.

During the searches of the case participants, law enforcement officers seized flash drives and mobile phones with evidence of illegal activities, as well as seals, letters, contracts, and other documents used to enter false information into the «Shlyakh» system.

 

The project «Ukraine: realities» is implemented by the News agency «Konkurent» together with the Civic Movement «SVIDOMI» in English for readers from other countries to tell the stories of people who survived the horrors of the Russian occupation.

Проєкт «Ukraine: realities» реалізовується Інформаційним агентством «Конкурент» спільно з Громадянським Рухом «СВІДОМІ» на англійській мові для читачів з інших країн аби розповісти історії людей, які пережили жахи російської окупації.