The draft law on the reform of the Asset Recovery and Management Agency, which was supposed to put an end to the "manual" management of seized property, unexpectedly "stalled" before the second reading in the Verkhovna Rada. This coincided with a high-profile scandal over possible corruption in the agency. Whether this is a coincidence - UNN investigated.
Details
Draft Law No. 12374-d on the reform of ARMA regulates the procedures for asset identification; improves the management of various types of assets; increases the transparency of the agency; regulates the issue of seized sanctioned assets. The document should also change the approaches to the selection of the head of ARMA and the audit.
It is supported by deputies of the anti-corruption committee, international partners of Ukraine and public organizations.
Last week, the document was planned to be considered in the second reading in the Verkhovna Rada, but, as one of the people's deputies told UNN in a comment, "it did not reach it".
It was during these days that a high-profile scandal erupted around ARMA - according to journalistic investigation, the House of Trade Unions on Independence Square was transferred to the management of a consortium that includes a company that may be associated with one of the previous beneficiaries of the asset. The publication also mentioned the name of the Vice Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration - Minister of Justice of Ukraine Olha Stefanishyna in the context of past family ties. She categorically denied any involvement in the possible scheme.
In response to the scandal, the head of ARMA, Olena Duma, accused the media of "wrong priorities".
Why did the reform stall right now - at a time when public attention is riveted to ARMA? The answer is given by the situation itself: the new law hits the ARMA leadership the most, which will receive clear restrictions. And most importantly, the reform opens the door to an independent audit and the possibility of personnel decisions. That is why it is being blocked. Because there is something to lose.
After the investigation into the alleged "manual" management of seized assets, it became obvious that the ARMA reform is not just relevant - it is critical.
This investigation once again confirmed that draft law No. 12374-d hits the very bull's-eye of the current asset management system, which is clearly designed for private, not public, interest
Draft Law No. 12374-d is not just a technical update. It is a kind of test. Both for the parliament, for the government, and for ARMA itself. Either society will receive a transparent system of management of seized property - or schemes that periodically manifest themselves in high-profile scandals. Delaying the changes is beneficial only to those who have something to lose.
Let us remind you
Olena Duma has repeatedly criticized draft law No. 12374-d on the reform of ARMA, which has already been supported by the parliament in the first reading. She stated that the document "contains politically motivated norms" and "may harm the entire anti-corruption infrastructure." At the same time, she calls her work at ARMA a "real breakthrough." At the same time, the head of the Verkhovna Rada's anti-corruption committee, Anastasia Radina, believes that Olena Duma and her colleagues "deliberately spread inaccurate information" about the draft law on the reform of ARMA in order to preserve the existing ineffective system.
Transparency International Ukraine actually supported Anastasia Radina's position and stated that the resistance of ARMA Head Olena Duma is nothing more than a reluctance to get rid of levers of influence. Anti-corruption experts conducted a content analysis of ARMA's public communication and concluded that instead of a constructive dialogue on reforming the institution, the agency has built a campaign to discredit draft law No. 12374-d on changing the system of management of seized property and avoids any public recognition of its own mistakes.