European Commissioner for Enlargement, Marta Kos, while demanding reforms from Ukraine, should remember the "integrity" of her own brother. Drago Kos participated in backroom deals for the appointment of the current NABU director, Semen Kryvonos, in exchange for promoting the interests of a European company in Ukraine. This was stated by former SAP prosecutor Stanislav Bronyvytskyi, according to "Ukrainian News".
According to Bronyvytskyi, the winner's candidacy was agreed upon in backroom deals mediated by NABU Deputy Director Polina Lysenko.
"While demanding reforms in Ukraine, Ms. Marta Kos should recall the integrity of her own brother – Drago, who demonstrated examples of high morality and ethical behavior inherent to many European representatives in Ukraine. In particular, one can recall his participation in backroom deals with representatives of the Ukrainian authorities and through the mediation of NABU Deputy Director Polina Lysenko, within which the candidacy of one of the leaders, whom Drago honestly and democratically elected as part of an independent commission, was agreed upon," Bronyvytskyi wrote.
As the former SAP prosecutor notes, Drago Kos was a member of the independent commission that selected candidates for the NABU director, and agreed to help in exchange for promoting the business of one of the European companies producing armored film in Ukraine.
"You give us business and earnings, and we give you a candidate agreed upon by everyone. This very candidate won the competition," writes the former SAP prosecutor, adding that he would not be surprised if existing video and audio recordings of these conversations involving Drago Kos from one of Kyiv's restaurants "surface" soon.
"Ukrainian News" reminded that in 2023, the competition commission for the selection of candidates for the position of Director of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine identified three winners – Semen Kryvonos, Serhiy Hupiak, and Roman Osypchuk. On March 6, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine at an extraordinary meeting appointed Semen Kryvonos as NABU Director.
Later, Kos expressed disappointment in his own choice of both the NABU director and the SAP head.
"You see, we chose the best candidates. And even these best candidates began to behave very strangely, trying to remain 'friends' of civil society," he said in an interview, adding that if you are not friends with anti-corruption organizations, then your life turns into hell.
"That is why some leaders of anti-corruption bodies try to adapt to public organizations," he noted.
Drago Kos began his career as a police investigator and deputy director of the Slovenian Investigation Department. He currently runs his own consulting firm specializing in anti-corruption, anti-money laundering, and corporate governance. In Ukraine, Kos was a member of several competition commissions that selected the heads of anti-corruption bodies.