The events that began with the disclosure of information about the alleged involvement of the already dismissed Deputy Prosecutor General Dmytro Verbytskyi in corruption and continued after Andriy Kostin's demonstrative refusal to give explanations to the Verkhovna Rada seem likely to end in the coming weeks. Moreover, it may end with the resignation of the entire leadership of the Prosecutor General's Office, UNN writes with reference to the publication Fakty.
Earlier, the media had already stated that Kostin "has become a boss who is always away." He is jokingly called the "Prosecutor General of Foreign Affairs." As a result, in two years, the Prosecutor General's Office has not achieved any results that it could boast of - neither in bringing high-profile criminal cases to court (including the shootings on Maidan in 2014), nor in reforming the prosecution service, nor in completing the certification of prosecutors.
As a result, according to Fakty, trust in the prosecutor's office, which rose to 61% in the first year of full-scale war (according to the NGO "Lawyer of the Future"), quickly returned to the pre-war level (62% distrust in October 2019, according to the Rating Group). In December 2023, the KIIS reported a collapse in trust indicators - down to 9% against 64% of those who did not trust the agency.
In the article, the author wonders whether Kostin is to blame for this inert state of the prosecutor's office
"The very system of 'prosecutors' that has been in place for years and decades has proven to be able to level all encroachments on their own informal rights and privileges.
The days of Pshonka are not worth mentioning, as the business of bringing in "suitcases" and "envelopes" was put on a conveyor belt. In 2014, it would seem that there was a chance for the transformation of this toxic body, given its perception by Ukrainians. However, none of Vitaliy Yarema's achievements are remembered, Shokin initiated the breakdown of relations with Biden, and the effectiveness of Yuriy Lutsenko, Ruslan Riaboshapka, and Iryna Venediktova is also rather questionable.
The Ukrainian media often mention the activities of Romanian anti-corruption prosecutor Laura Coveschi, who has brought thousands of high-ranking officials to the dock, including the brother of the Romanian president.
In domestic realities, however, the next "dear friends" remain untouchable for the prosecutor's office," the article says.
As a result, in 2021, Ukraine ranked 122nd out of 180 countries in the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), 116th in 2022, and 104th in 2023. That is, some progress is being made, but is it the prosecution's fault?
The author cites a number of news stories that prosecutors have been giving since 2022: Let's take a look at the news headlines featuring prosecutors in 2022-2024.
August 2022: In Mykolaiv region, the SBU detained a prosecutor who offered a serviceman under investigation to avoid a prison term for a bribe.
October 2022: In Vinnytsia region, a prosecutor was caught drunk driving.
October 2022: The SBU detained a prosecutor who "guaranteed" disability registration for money.
November 2022: The SBI detained a prosecutor of the Zaporizhzhia District Prosecutor's Office while receiving a $2,000 bribe.
November 2022: SBI officers detain a prosecutor of an Odesa prosecutor's office on suspicion of bribery
March 2023: In Sumy region, entrepreneurs accuse the prosecutor's office of coercion.
May 2023: SBI officers detain a Kharkiv prosecutor while he was receiving a $35,000 bribe.
October 2023: The SBI detains a prosecutor of the Fastiv District Prosecutor's Office on a $45,000 bribe.
October 2023: In Dnipro, the SBI detained a prosecutor on a $10,000 bribe for reclassifying the article for the accused.
February 2024: The head of the Tulchyn district prosecutor's office in Vinnytsia region is detained for taking a bribe.
March 2024: The SBI detains a prosecutor of the Kyiv Local Prosecutor's Office while he was taking $100,000.
April 2024: An influential prosecutor is detained in Cherkasy.
June 2024: In Kyiv, a prosecutor misappropriated over UAH 4 million of material evidence.
The author concludes that the prosecutor's office did contribute to Ukraine's progress in the Corruption Perceptions Index. But only in the context of its employees being detained by SBI and SBU investigators.
"It is obvious that the legal environment that regulates the activities of prosecutors leaves them a very wide field for their activities and interpretation of the law. And they often use this for corrupt purposes.
Back in 2014. The Council of Europe formulated recommendations for judicial and prosecutorial reform in Ukraine.
Ten years later, as we have seen with the Verbytsky case, the movement in this direction, if any, is frankly insufficient to ensure that both Ukrainian society and our Western partners have confidence in the prosecutor's office.
And simply replacing some executives with others will not change the situation. It seems that this, at least after Kostin's demarche, has been realized in the Verkhovna Rada," the author summarizes.