Lawyer: ARMA needs to conduct an independent external audit to determine the effectiveness of its work

The Asset Recovery and Management Agency (ARMA) needs to conduct a full-fledged independent external audit to check the effectiveness of this body and its management. This opinion was expressed in an exclusive commentary to UNN by Dmytro Ostapenko, attorney-at-law, partner at Krolevetsky & Partners.

As for external audit, I am all for it, it never hurts. Moreover, controllability and accountability of public authorities is the key to their effectiveness. Therefore, I believe that there is every reason to conduct it,

He noted that society had a lot of questions about the work of previous ARMA leaders, and therefore international experts would be able to "shed light" on whether the current head of ARMA, Olena Duma, has corrected mistakes and whether the agency has become more effective.

"I am convinced that it is, because now we, the state, need every penny," Ostapenko said.

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It should be noted that statements about the need for an independent external audit of the ARMA have been made repeatedly. In particular, Pavlo Demchuk , legal advisor of Transparency International Ukraine, notedthat a full-fledged external audit of the ARMA has never been conducted, and the limited amount of information about the agency's activities may pose corruption risks.

Amid the criticism, ARMA head Olena Duma even made a statement that she had ordered an audit of the agency's activities for 2023 from the Accounting Chamber.

At the same time, it is worth adding that the State Bureau of Investigation is already investigating criminal proceedings on the fact of alleged official negligence by the ARMA leadership. It was opened in March of this year.