Formal rotation or real changes? The Academic Council of the State Biotechnological University dismissed MP-bribe-taker Odarchenko

The Academic Council of the State Biotechnological University decided to remove the people's deputy, convicted of bribery, Andriy Odarchenko, from his duties as chairman of the council in connection with the statement of the bribing people's deputy. Valeriy Mykhailov, his deputy, was temporarily appointed as the acting chairman of the Academic Council of SBU. The new temporary head of the council reported this in an exclusive comment to UNN.

Removal of the bribing people's deputy

"We dismissed Odarchenko from the position of head of the academic council. Yes. And, of course, I, as deputy, continue to perform my duties for the appropriate period until a new head of the academic council is elected... I commented a few words (during the meeting of the Academic Council - ed.) that, unfortunately, there are court decisions and so on, which obviously do not allow him (Odarchenko - ed.) to work. He appealed to us. We cannot but satisfy his (request - ed.). Of course, for our work, we need to satisfy this issue (regarding Odarchenko's removal from office - ed.)," Mykhailov said. 

According to him, a letter with the signature of the bribing people's deputy was received from Odarchenko to the official email of SBU. This is how the document was verified.

"I saw the signature, and that's all... I didn't do an examination. The email arrived. I don't know from which address, the university's chancellery received it. It was brought to my office, and I was told that it was a letter from Odarchenko. That's it. I was immediately stunned, started reading it, and slowed down the meeting of the Academic Council, because this issue had to be put on the agenda then," Mykhailov said.

At the same time, he assures that he does not communicate with the fugitive rector Odarchenko. 

Who is Valeriy Mykhailov?

UNN mentioned Valeriy Mykhailov, the vice-rector for scientific work and acting head of the Academic Council of SBU, in a previous article as a person from the sphere of influence of the bribing people's deputy Andriy Odarchenko. 

Mykhailov, in a comment to UNN, claims that he cannot be influenced.

"I don't solve any issues with him. Absolutely. It's impossible to influence me, so you understand. I am a self-sufficient person and I see what needs to be done for the development of the university," he emphasized.

However, facts speak louder than words.

Before the merger of four universities into one – SBU – Valeriy Mykhailov was the vice-rector for scientific work at the Kharkiv State University of Food Technology and Trade, where the father of the fugitive people's deputy Mykola Odarchenko worked as a dean. It was the Odarchenko family who lobbied for the appointment of Mykhailov, who was close to them, to the position of vice-rector for scientific and pedagogical work and European integration at the newly created State Biotechnological University.

Such an appointment was not accidental, as Mykhailov was one of those in Odarchenko's team who had to ensure the bribing people's deputy's victory in the SBU rector elections at any cost.

 Thus, during the elections, Mykhailov headed the organizing committee and actively participated in falsifications, which later became the subject of a number of lawsuits. According to court materials, during the university rector elections, the rights of candidates and voters were restricted. In addition, the organizers of the voting process, in violation of the law, using their official position, conducted open campaigning for Odarchenko. Mykhailov, apparently, was among those who, contrary to the requirements of the law, restricted access of candidates and their representatives to the vote counting process after the elections. 

It should be noted that after winning the rector elections, the bribing people's deputy appointed Valeriy Mykhailov as the vice-rector for scientific work of SBU.

Improvement of property status: was there or not?

In the previous article, the UNN editorial board, describing the influence of the bribing people's deputy Odarchenko on the university's management, indicated that representatives of his team significantly improved their property status. Valeriy Mykhailov was also mentioned among them.

This caused such indignation from the vice-rector for scientific work that he decided to comment on the publication.

"But there was no improvement. I haven't made any acquisitions in these years. My salary is all clear, precise, and understandable. You understand? And I drive a 1998 car... Everything is visible there. You understand? And to write that I improved here, for how much, for 3 years, well, look, dear sirs, what are you writing?" Mykhailov noted.

The editorial board of UNN decided to recheck and examine the vice-rector's declarations more carefully. 

And this is what was found out. In 2019, he inherited a house and two land plots in the village of Korobochkyne in the Kharkiv region from his mother. 

In the latest annual declaration for 2024, Valeriy Mykhailov indicated both the inheritance and that he owns an apartment in Kharkiv with an area of 79.6 sq m purchased in 2005 for 151,601 hryvnias (at the exchange rate at that time - about 30 thousand dollars).

In addition, his wife Olena Mykhailova, who also works at the State Biotechnological University, owns two more apartments in Kharkiv of more than 40 and more than 55 sq m, which were purchased in 2008 and 2019, respectively.

Valeriy Mykhailov also owns a 1998 Skoda Felicia car and a trailer. His wife has a 2011 DAEWOO MATIZ car.

Last year, his family's total income amounted to about 1.3 million UAH. Everything looks modest and decent.

However, something else attracts attention – the accumulated assets of the family. A review of the declaration in progression shows how the Mykhailovs' wealth began to increase after moving to the State Biotechnological University, which was created in 2021.

In particular, according to the declaration for 2020, Valeriy Mykhailov kept 2,900 dollars and 450 euros in cash, and had 40,501 hryvnias in a bank account. He kept 218,394 hryvnias in precious bank metals. His wife had 1,869 hryvnias in a bank account.

Already in 2024, three years after working at SBU, Valeriy Mykhailov has 364,799 hryvnias in his bank account, and his wife Olena has 72,369 hryvnias. The vice-rector keeps 10,500 dollars and 50,000 hryvnias in cash. In addition, he also retained an asset in the form of precious metals.

Whether such facts constitute an improvement in financial well-being is for the audience to judge. But, as Mykhailov himself says: "A lot or not a lot. But it's enough for life."

Does he really know what needs to be done for the university's development?

In his comment to UNN, Mykhailov claims that he knows "what needs to be done for the university's development." However, a more detailed study of the situation at the State Biotechnological University indicates that he rather knows what needs to be done to destroy the university.

After all, during Mykhailov's tenure as vice-rector for scientific work, not a single doctoral council was created. And this is despite the fact that at the time of the merger, each of the universities had several of them. In addition, the training of doctors of science has been practically stopped, although in the institutions that became part of SBU during optimization, this area of activity had one of the highest levels of development in Ukraine. 

According to UNN sources among university staff, after the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Odarchenko's team, including Mykhailov, organized a number of corruption schemes regarding fictitious employment, as well as admission to postgraduate studies of persons who evade their duty to defend the Motherland during a special period. The interlocutors note that the schemes for illegal enrichment are personally supervised by the bribing people's deputy Odarchenko and the acting rector of SBU Andriy Kudryashov.

One example is the postgraduate study of the scandalous former people's deputy Trukhin, known for the phrase "... I'll quietly go into the forest." The High Anti-Corruption Court found him guilty of attempting to bribe patrol police officers. 

Another notable postgraduate student of the State Biotechnological University is Bohdan Mykhailov - the son of the vice-rector for scientific work.

So, changing the signs does not change the essence. As long as people from the sphere of influence of the bribing people's deputy hold leadership positions at the university, no real reforms are to be expected. SBU remains in the shadow of scandals, lawsuits, and corruption stories, in which the main actors remain the same people. At the same time, the educational process and the teaching staff suffer, as the salary arrears there amount to more than 20 million hryvnias.