The head of government assures that individual cases of corruption in the relevant ministry are immediately fought.
There is no systemic corruption in the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine. This was stated by the Prime Minister of Ukraine to the German edition of Focus, answering a question about the recent scandal with the purchase of food for the Armed Forces of Ukraine. This interview was published by the Uryadov portal.
Answering the question whether the recent corruption scandal in the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine is a sign of structural problems in the country, Denys Shmygal replied that there are no such problems. The prime minister also said that there is now zero tolerance for corruption in Ukraine.
“Ukraine is completing the development of anti-corruption infrastructure. Institutions are fully functioning and check all levels for corruption. Society has changed as a result of this war and no longer forgives signs of possible offenses. We have zero tolerance for corruption. The reaction is instantaneous. Rapid detention of people suspected of abuse, indicates a change in Ukraine’s approach to these issues. Today there is no systemic corruption in Ukraine. Isolated manifestations of corruption, I emphasize the word “single”, they are not tolerated, they are immediately fought,” Shmyhal said.
Scandal with the purchase of food for the Armed Forces of Ukraine
A month ago, the ZN.UA edition published a journalistic investigation, according to which the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine purchases products for the military twice as much as they actually cost. Judging by the documents, the Ministry of Defense ordered eggs for 17 UAH each and potatoes for 22 UAH per kg, although in the capital of Ukraine the retail price is 7 and 9 UAH, respectively.
The Ministry of Defense of Ukraine responded to the media on the scandal with the purchase of food for the Armed Forces of Ukraine and called the information about the content of the purchase of food services, which were made public in the media, those that are distributed with signs of deliberate manipulation and misleading.
Later it became known that NABU launched an investigation into the procurement of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine even before the media reports. According to the department, a possible offense is tentatively qualified as misappropriation, embezzlement or possession of property.
We remind you that the Minister of Defense of Ukraine Oleksiy Reznikov said that due to technical errors in the documentation, journalists submitted distorted information in their investigation.
Also, Valery Zaluzhny, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, reacted to the scandal with the purchase of products for the army, saying that all manifestations of corruption in the Ministry of Defense and the army should be thoroughly investigated, and the transfer of responsibility of subordinates to the leadership harms the cause.
At the end of January, Aleksey Reznikov said that the procurement of products of the Ministry of Defense would become transparent. The Minister of Defense announced that he had eliminated the monopoly in the field of procurement of products for the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
In early February, it became known that the SBI had detained entrepreneurs who were selling eggs to the military for 17 hryvnias. Law enforcement officers calculated the damage that businessmen and employees of the Ministry of Defense inflicted on the state – UAH 4.6 million.
