Lawyer on Hetmantsev's actions: it is a direct violation of the law “On the Status of People's Deputy of Ukraine”

A member of the Ukrainian parliament is obliged to act solely within the limits of his or her powers as defined by law, and any interference in the activities of state bodies may be regarded as an abuse of power. This opinion was expressed in an exclusive commentary to UNN by a well-known lawyer, former Deputy Prosecutor General of Ukraine Oleksiy Bahanets, commenting on the situation related to the interference of MP Danylo Hetmantsev in the work of state bodies.

Context

In an interview with UNN, former head of the Khmelnytsky Oblast Tax Service Iryna Zlenko said that the head of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Finance, Taxation and Customs Policy, Danylo Hetmantsev, systematically interferes with the work of the State Tax Service. According to her, Hetmantsev is actually in charge of the tax service instead of the acting head of the State Tax Service, Tetiana Kiriyenko. Iryna Zlenko noted that she has video evidence that Hetmantsev holds conference calls with tax officials, gives them instructions and decides which of them should be fired. In addition, Zlenko said that during one of the committee's meetings, Hetmantsev instructed her to be more loyal to one of the businessmen in Khmelnytsky region who did not pay taxes.

Of course, this is an abuse of power. In this way, the MP goes beyond his powers, which are set out in the law "On the Status of the People's Deputy of Ukraine." He should be engaged in the main thing - legislative activity

According to him, if the MP is approached by his constituents on any issues, he has the right to send a request or appeal, for example, to a supervisory authority, law enforcement agency, or prosecutor's office, but only an appeal or complaint, or a parliamentary inquiry.

In the lawyer's opinion, the same thing that was voiced by Iryna Zlenko is an abuse of power or official authority.

Mr. Baganets also explained that such actions may have legal consequences depending on the circumstances. If the MP's interference has a corruption component, this issue is within the competence of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine. "The NABU pays attention when it comes to corrupt actions of an MP. If a person or an MP interferes with the activities of a supervisory body or law enforcement agency, and if he or she thereby pursues a corrupt goal or corrupt goals, then this will, of course, be the basis for the NABU to decide to register criminal proceedings and conduct an investigation into this fact," he emphasized.

Add

UNN asked the NABU whether law enforcement officers plan to open criminal proceedings based on Iryna Zlenko's statements. In response, the NABU reportedthat detectives will take into account the information about violations of the law by Hetmantsev and acting Deputy Head of the State Tax Service of Ukraine Yevhen Sokur, which was provided by Iryna Zlenko, during the investigation.

Recall

Earlier, experts interviewed by UNN pointed out that the head of the Rada's tax committee, Danylo Hetmantsev, is the supervisor of the tax service. He influences the decisions made by the tax authorities. In particular, Hetmantsev is assisted by Acting Deputy Head of the State Tax Service Yevhen Sokur, who used to be an assistant to the MP.